A trio of subsidiaries of waste company Cleanaway, including its South Windsor site, have been fined $31,500 by the NSW Environment Protection Authority for alleged waste storage and record keeping offences.
The fines follow a complaince inspection operation by the EPA on Cleanaway premises on June 29.
The sites were Cleanaway Co Pty Ltd at Fairy Road, South Windsor, Cleanaway Operations Pty Ltd at Kyle Street, Rutherford, and Cleanaway Resource Co RRF Pty Ltd at Frank Street, Wetherill Park.
EPA Executive Director regulatory operations Steve Beaman said that the potential licence breaches were discovered during the compliance operation, which occurred simultaneously at each site.
At South Windsor, the EPA alleges the company failed to keep records relating to the disposal of waste between June 2018 and March 2020.
"Accurate and complete record keeping provides proof of proper handling of waste," said Mr Beaman.
"It's important for companies to comply with their licences to reduce risk to the environment and be transparent.
"The EPA will respond with enforcement if they don't comply."
At the Rutherford site the EPA found a number of drums and other storage tanks stockpiled on unsealed, uncovered and poorly contained areas, allegedly in breach of the company's Environment Protection Licence.
"Some of the drums were stacked in a way which created a risk of them falling and spilling," said Mr Beaman.
"Together with poorly maintained containment areas, this created the potential for environmental harm.
"Some containment areas used to store drums had holes which meant that if the drums leaked, the spill would not be contained and could leak to soil or nearby waterways."
At Wetherill Park, EPA officers found on both 22 and 29 June 2020 waste stockpiled in an outside area not designated for waste storage.
Other regulatory action by the EPA arising from the compliance operation has already been taken and further action may be taken as a result of the blitz.
