Greater Western Water (GWW) has been fined $9246 by the Environment Protection Authority Victoria (EPA) for the discharge of sediment stormwater from an irrigation dam at Romsey Recycled Water Plant to Deep Creek in February.
In an announcement on June 14, EPA said officers were called to Portingales Lane in Romsey on Feburary 24, 2023, following reports of a large volume of discoloured water moving down Deep Creek.
Officers discovered brown coloured water discharging from a catchment dam of a nearby site being developed by GWW contractors.
This development was for the future irrigation of reclaimed water to the immediate area, and the EPA said the contractors operating the dam pumped sediment laden water into the creek.
EPA north-west regional manager Dr Scott Pigdon said duty holders, like GWW, have an obligation to manage all works undertaken at their properties, whether it’s their staff or contractors.
In a statement released on June 13, GWW apologised for the incident and said it shares the community’s values and priorities for maintaining the health of Deep Creek.
GWW said it was not a release of recycled water from the plant, and an independent assessment confirmed there were no long term environmental impacts to Deep Creek.
Measures to stabilise the irrigation dam and drainage channels to prevent sediment build up in stormwater runoff is also being implemented.
GWW said it understands the community’s concern about the plant’s capacity, and an upgrade will start next year to provide Romsey and Lancefield customers with a safe and reliable sewerage service.
Zoe Moffatt
