Charge:

1. Contravene requirements of a clean up notice at Tottenham on 28 February 2020, contrary to s.62A(3).

Crossroads Logistics Pty Ltd (ACN 615 510 579) and its Director, Christian James McDonald and General Manager, Arthur Sofos were fined $23,000 in fines, costs and donations after failing to comply with an EPA order to clean up a pile of industrial waste that included dangerous chemicals.

The EPA Victoria charge against the company, director and manager was contravening a notice to take clean up and ongoing measures, a breach of the Environmental Protection Act 1970. They entered a plea of guilty.

The company ran a storage business for freight and other materials at Somerville Rd, Tottenham. In February 2019, it received large quantities of liquid and solid industrial waste which were stored on rented site nearby.

The stockpile included various types of industrial waste in intermediate bulk containers (IBCs), 200-litre chemical storage drums and bulker bags. Approximately 10 of the IBCs were labelled as containing 'Class 8 - Corrosive' dangerous goods.

After several inspections, EPA issued a Clean Up Notice on 31 January 2020 requiring Crossroads to remove the stockpile for disposal at a licensed facility by 28 February 2020.

Crossroads left the premises in late March 2020 but did not contribute to the clean-up, leaving the landowner to deal with the industrial waste.

In the Sunshine Magistrates' Court, Magistrate J D Williams fined the company $7,000 and ordered it to pay EPA court costs of $12,000, with no conviction recorded.

The director and manager were released on a 12-month Adjourned Undertaking, on the condition that each pays $2,000 to the Court Fund, be of good behaviour and undertake not to receive industrial waste personally or as an officer of a corporation.