Cambridge composting company fined $64K for illegal discharges into stream flowing into Waikato River

October 31, 2017
The contaminant discharging into the stream.

A composting company in Cambridge has been fined $64,125 over illegal discharges into a stream flowing into the Waikato River. 

The Waikato Regional Council said in a statement Remediation (NZ) Limited, trading as Revital Group, was discharging chicken manure, green-waste leachate and sediment into the stream. 

A member of the public discovered a section of waterway that was "brown, foamy and smelt strongly of effluent", the statement said. 

"Enquiries at the property revealed that a large, trailer mounted pump had been hired by the company and used to pump approximately 1.6 million litres of leachate from a holding pond into the nearby stream."

"The leachate contained high levels of E.coli which can affect human health."

The chicken manure had been illegally stored, contributing to the contamination, and a quarry at the site was discharging "unaccpetable levels of sediment" into the stream.

Hamilton District Court Judge Melanie Harland said the company was "favouring of economic considerations over environmental compliance".

"Remediation (NZ) Limited was also convicted for breaching the Resource Management Act in 2010 following a prosecution by the Taranaki Regional Council for breaches of resource consent. This was considered as part of sentencing," the statement said. 

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