Tweed firm in hot water

A WATER extraction and bottling business in the Tweed has been fined for using larger trucks and running more trips than allowed by the council.

Tweed Shire Council will pursue figures from a federal government body to check whether the owners of Mount Warning Spring Water took too much water at their Kunghur property.

The council’s manager of development assessment and compliance Lindsay McGavin said two owners of the company on Kyogle Rd were hit with four fines totalling $12,000.

Council documents state the fines were for “historically using large trucks” while restricted to using “small trucks” and for “exceeding the allocated trip numbers in November 2017”.

Councillors voted on a motion to write a warning to the owners, to issue penalty infringement notices and to “pursue the Natural Resource Access Regulator for any and all water extraction volume figures from 2005-2019”.

The vote split the council, with Mayor Katie Milne siding with Deputy Mayor Chris Cherry and councillor Ron Cooper in support.

Warren Polglase was joined by councillors James Owen and Pryce Allsop in opposing the motion, and councillor Reece Byrnes was absent.

The motion was carried on Cr Milne’s casting vote.

Should the council find any breaches, fines will be issued “for each year that the volumes were exceeded”.

A report before the council has been classified confidential as it “concerns legal matters which could influence proceedings”.

Tweed Water Alliance has been a vocal opponent of water extraction, or water mining, due to concerns about environmental harm and excessive plastic waste.

Alliance spokesman Pat Miller said his group raised the noncompliance with the council in 2017. He was pleased it had fined the company and planned to dig deeper.

“We had prima facie evidence that they were taking water beyond their allocation, so that was the basis of our action and I’m really pleased the council is finally taking regulatory action to make sure they comply with conditions,” Mr Miller said. future

I’M PLEASED THE COUNCIL IS FINALLY TAKING REGULATORY ACTION TO MAKE SURE THEY COMPLY WITH CONDITIONS

“But it does not, in any way, divert our assertions that this is an unsustainable industry where they’re pulling bore water, not spring water, from the ground.”

Mount Warning Spring Water describes its product as “naturally Byron Bay” on its website.

“A gift from the pristine mountains overlooking Byron Bay, Mount Warning Spring Water is filtered by nature through layers of ancient volcanic rock,” it reads.

The company was repeatedly contacted for comment but did not respond.