27 Nov 2013

Transporter fined over effluent in stream

6:35 am on 27 November 2013

A Reporoa livestock transport company has been fined $26,000 for discharging effluent which ended up in a stream.

Bay of Plenty Regional Council prosecuted Central Transport Ltd after investigating a complaint earlier this year about effluent flowing across State Highway 5, south of Rotorua, and into a stream.

The pollution came from a paddock the company was irrigating with effluent collected from its stock trucks.

The effluent had flowed into a drain and then into nearby streams - one of them a known bathing site for children and of significant cultural and ecological value. Stream samples showed high levels of contamination.

The company told the council staff responsible for checking the irrigator had left and not been replaced.