Russell Vale Colliery owners, Wollongong Resources Pty Ltd has been fined by the EPA after tonnes off coal was discharged from the site. Photo: Keeli Royle.
Wollongong Resources Pty Ltd was fined $38,000 by the EPA after tonnes of coal was discharged from its Russell Vale Colliery site and the company failed to report the incident.
An EPA spokesperson said that during heavy rain in April about 30 tonnes of coal was discharged from the premises, impacting private properties downstream of the site.
The EPA’s investigation found that Wollongong Resources breached its licence after it failed to maintain drains and stormwater controls on its premises.
NSW EPA Director Operations, Adam Gilligan, said it was disappointing the licensee didn’t have the necessary maintenance programs in place to prevent the incident.
“Wollongong Resources was not properly maintaining their stormwater systems, causing blockages,” Mr Gilligan said.
“This contributed to large volumes of stormwater leaving the site, picking up coal material from unsealed roads, which flowed into residential streets and yards.
“It’s unacceptable Wollongong Resources failed to have efficient systems in place and even more concerning that they failed to report the incident.
“It’s critical that communities are able to recover as soon as possible following weather events, and the company’s failure to report the incident immediately caused the clean-up to be delayed.
“All licensees are expected to comply with their licence conditions and operate within the law. If they fail to do so, we’ll take regulatory action and ensure steps are taken to prevent future similar incidents.”
It’s unknown what, if any effect the fines will have on the business.
Russell Vale Colliery has not operated since 18 January 2024, when it was shut down by the NSW Resources Regulator following five underground fires.
Wollongong Resources then announced its intention to close the site alongside the Wongawilli Colliery.
The EPA oversaw the clean-up of affected areas and added new conditions to the company’s licence requiring an evaluation and upgrades to stormwater infrastructure.
The clean-up has now been completed and the EPA is satisfied that there are no ongoing impacts to the environment.
The EPA encourages the community to report pollution and environmental incidents to the Environment Line on 131 555 or [email protected].
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