Contaminated water was discharged into stormwater drains by AML Limited on Port Rd. Photo / NRC
Contaminated water was discharged into stormwater drains by AML Limited on Port Rd. Photo / NRC
A concrete company has been penalised with a fine of more than $52,000 for releasing pollutants from its manufacturing operations leading to contamination of a drain that empties into Whangārei Harbour.
AML Limited pleaded guilty to one charge of discharging contaminants and appeared for sentencing in February in the Environment Court at Whangārei before Environment Judge Jeff Smith.
Between September and early November 2021, the Port Rd company was found to have been operating beyond the scope of its compliance certificate.
The plant utilised a “Bibko” system to recycle processed yard water, aiming to clarify and reuse for concrete production reducing overall water usage at the site.
However, during the Covid lockdown in 2021, the plant was producing primarily high-stress concrete and was unable to reuse water effectively due to the nature of high-stress concrete requiring clean water.
As production shifted towards high-stress concrete, compounded by faults in the Bibko system from around August 2021, surplus water accumulated on site.
Despite attempts to service the system, the issue persisted, resulting in the discharge of excess water into nearby drains through the stormwater system.
Northland Regional Council staff discovered the surplus water in a drain adjacent to the site that contained slurry, flowing into nearby culverts and reaching low-lying mangroves.
The company was unaware of the discharge until approached by council officers and staff assumed the company was operating in compliance with environmental obligations.
Judge Smith recognised the enduring value of ecological areas but emphasised the failure of management to adapt to changing circumstances.
The water containing slurry reached low-lying mangroves. Photo / NRC
“The company was in trouble because it was producing too much water.
“This flowed around about 140m down the roadside to a culvert which was mostly blocked, and there was clear evidence, both photographic and technical, showing there was a high degree of what I will call cement sedimentation in that channel,” Judge Smith said at sentencing.
“The harbour itself has been compromised by human activities for a considerable period from the refinery, the port, the cement works, boatbuilding, landfills, including rubbish dumps, and of course the formation of the development on which this heavy industrial zone is situated.
“The failure was a failure by management to recognise that the change to the production of the high-quality concrete and the Bibko faulting would fundamentally change the way to utilise the site,” Judge Smith said.
Despite the company spending more than half a million dollars to replace the faulty system, Judge Smith said compliance should have been upheld from the outset.
AML were fined $52,500 plus court costs and directed 90 per cent to be paid to Northland Regional Council.
Shannon Pitman is a Whangārei-based reporter for Open Justice covering courts in the Te Tai Tokerau region. She is of Ngāpuhi/ Ngāti Pūkenga descent and has worked in digital media for the past five years. She joined NZME in 2023.
