A building company contracted to construct the new Forest High School in Allambie was hit with a $30,000 fine from the Environment Protection Authority (EPA) for sediment pollution that could threaten a local prehistoric species.
ADCO Construction was issued a clean-up notice by the EPA in June after multiple community members complained about ‘brown sediment laden water’ being discharged down a nearby stormwater system on Allambie Road, feeding directly into creeks that flow into Manly Dam.
Northern Beaches Council became aware of the pollution in January this year, after receiving alerts from the community. They assisted the EPA in undertaking site inspections, conducting water monitoring and gathering photographic evidence of the pollution incident.
Northern Beaches Mayor, Sue Heins, said she welcomes the ‘strong action by the EPA’ who provided ADCO Construction with the maximum penalty.
“The community and Council have advocated for the EPA to take action to hold this construction company to account for the pollution they have caused and to make sure it doesn’t happen again,” Mayor Heins said in a statement to Manly Observer.
“I hope it sends a strong message to other such large companies to properly secure and contain their sites to prevent damage to their neighbours and the environment.”
However, not everyone was pleased with size of the fine, believing an ecological fallout is still possible.
A major concern from the Save Manly Dam Catchment Committee (SMDCC) was the pollution of Curl Curl Creek, which is the exclusive Sydney home of the climbing galaxias fish – which is estimated to be up to 90 million years old.
Malcolm Fisher, Vice Chair of the committee, said it’s too little too late.
“It’s encouraging that finally something has been done. But A, it’s too late, and B, it’s inadequate. Are they going to put any money towards helping to rehabilitate the creek or even monitor the fish? No”
“It’s encouraging that finally something has been done. But A, it’s too late, and B, it’s inadequate. Are they going to put any money towards helping to rehabilitate the creek or even monitor the fish? No, they’re not even monitoring the fish because the EPA says, it’s not listed as a threatened species under NSW Fisheries,” Malcolm said.
“So, the monitoring, again, will have to come from the community.”
The EPA said it received no reports the June incident harmed the Creek’s climbing galaxias population. They were advised by the Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development (DPIRD) Fisheries NSW the species was not listed as threatened and therefore not a priority for a survey.
Northern Beaches Council also requested the species be monitored but was knocked back by DPIRD Fisheries NSW for the same reason.
However, Environmental scientist and climbing galaxias expert, Sonya Ku, has volunteered to monitor the fish herself, an excursion Manly Observer will join next week.
The rare Curl Curl Creek fish is believed to be the only population of its kind in Sydney. Its prehistoric lineage and ability to last long amounts of time out of water and scurry along land makes it a unique addition to the Northern Beaches environment.
SMDCC first noticed the mass pollution inflicted on the species’ home in January after multiple community members alerted them to a “horrendous amount of mud” pouring into the creek.
“We also went up there and had a look at it, and it’s just a river of mud flowing into the main feeder creek of Manly Dam,” Malcolm said.
“When we first reported the mudflow to the NSW Department of Education, they were aware that their sites had these shocking issues, and rather than take immediate action, they just ensured that the fence around the site was so high that nobody could see. So that seems to be their first response.”
This is not the first time the creeks around Manly Dam have become polluted due to school construction in recent years. In 2019, a GIPA obtained by Save Manly Dam showed Lahey Constructions was fined $20,000 for polluting Manly Creek at Mermaid Pools. The company was working on the construction of Manly Vale Public School.
Both pollution-emanating sites orchestrated by ADCO and Lahey Constructions were NSW Department of Education projects.
Independent Member for Wakehurst, Michael Regan, believes ADCO Construction’s fine to be bittersweet and says more needs to be done as climate change drives increasingly frequent and intense rain events.
“”It is good to see the EPA come down on a contractor for doing the wrong thing, but the damage is already done,” he said.
“As intense rain events become more frequent, we need to increase sediment run-off protections in our planning system approvals.”
Since the fine, ADCO Construction has introduced a water treatment system onsite to remove sediment and improve the quality of any stormwater discharged from the site.
Construction continues and the new Forest High School is estimated to be completed within the next six months.
The EPA said they have been inspecting the site since early 2024 and will maintain strong regulatory oversight to ensure that all environmental protection measures are complied with and implemented, as required.
