Clarence Colliery Fined A$815,000 for River Pollution
Clarence Colliery has been fined $815,000 for polluting the Wollangambe River with untreated mine water. The NSW EPA prosecution marks a historic penalty for failing to test pollution response plans, highlighting a zero-tolerance approach to environmental negligence near the Blue Mountains National Park.
Harry Taruva 
Sydney - Clarence Colliery Pty Ltd has been ordered to pay A$815,000 (about US$575,000) in fines and penalties following a successful prosecution by the New South Wales Environment Protection Authority (EPA) for the discharge of untreated mine water into the Wollangambe River.
The conviction, handed down in the Land and Environment Court, involves five environmental offences under the Protection of the Environment Operations Act 1997.
The charges stem from pollution incidents occurring between December 2023 and April 2024 at the company’s coal mine near Lithgow, situated near the Blue Mountains National Park.
The total financial impact on the company, a subsidiary of Centennial Coal Company Pty Ltd, includes A$543,500 in direct fines for environmental offences, A$185,000 to cover the EPA’s legal and investigation costs and A$86,500 toward rehabilitation works for Long Swamp, managed by Local Land Services.
NSW EPA Chief Executive Officer, Tony Chappel, described the outcome as one of the largest secured by the regulator.
"This is a substantial penalty and it should serve as a warning that pollution comes at a cost, not only to the environment and communities, but to licence holders who break the law," Chappel said.
The court found that the mine allowed large volumes of turbid, contaminated water containing elevated levels of nickel and zinc to overflow into the river system.
Beyond the physical pollution, the company was cited for significant administrative and procedural failures which include breach of prevention notice where it failed to comply with formal directions to mitigate risks.
The company failed to test its Pollution Incident Response Management Plan (PIRMP) for 269 days, marking the first time in history a penalty has been issued for non-compliance with these specific testing requirements.
"Sediment and coal material entering waterways has the potential to cause serious environmental harm," Chappel said, "in this case, the company not only allowed... contaminated water to overflow... but it also failed to properly test its pollution incident response plan."
As part of the court order, Clarence Colliery must publicly acknowledge its failures. This includes publishing notices of the conviction in nominated newspapers, on the Centennial Coal website, and on the company’s LinkedIn page.
The EPA said environmental obligations are not optional and that the prosecution serves as a clear example of the strong enforcement action taken when licence holders fall short of their responsibilities to the community and the environment.
