Cause or permit an environmental hazard being the overflow of raw sewerage at the Long Gully Creek and surrounding land, at North Bendigo, on or about 31.07.2013, contrary to s.27A(1)(c).

On 21 July 2013 around 9am, a council worker was out spraying weeds when they noticed overflowing sewage near the corner of Holdsworth Road and Prouses Road in North Bendigo.

When Coliban Water workers arrived shortly after, they saw tree roots had blocked the sewerage system, causing the sewerage to escape and overflow from two manholes into Long Gully Creek and surrounding land which backed onto residential properties.

The blockage was cleared about 11am, public access to the area had been restricted and a vacuum tanker was brought in to remove about 208,000 litres of sewage.  

EPA visited the site the same day to investigate the spill site and take water samples.  The officer found a large number of sewage solids covered the surrounding area.

While the exact volume of the spill was unknown, it is estimated between 500,000 to one million litres of sewage had spilled from the system and that a 1.5km stretch of Long Gully Creek was impacted.

Water samples taken from EPA and Coliban Water found E.coli levels exceeded levels safe for primary or secondary contact and there was potential serious risk to human health should people come in contact with the water.  the high levels of E.coli returned to low levels by 13 August. 

Coliban Water spent the next week cleaning up the area and that it monitored water quality in the creek after the incident until it had returned to satisfactory levels.