COLIBAN Water has been fined for three spills of untreated sewage into waterways.

The water authority pleaded guilty in the   Bendigo Magistrates’ Court last month to three charges of permitting an environmental hazard.

The spills occurred in August and September, 2005, as a result of malfunctions of sewerage pumping stations at Malmsbury, Maldon and Castlemaine and resulted in significant volumes of sewage entering watercourses.

The largest spill was at Castlemaine where about 50,000 litres entered Campbells Creek.

EPA Victoria North West regional manager Jeff Cummins said water authorities needed to take care with their reticulated sewerage systems, particularly when sewer pumping stations were located near water courses.

“Water authorities have a duty to ensure that any environmental discharges are properly investigated and cleaned up,” he said.

“However, it is encouraging to note Coliban Water has now conducted an environmental risk audit on its sewer systems to identify risks it needs to manage.”

Without imposing a conviction, the court ordered Coliban to pay $60,000 towards three environmental projects in the affected water catchment areas.

The money will be used to rehabilitate sections of Loddon and Coliban rivers and Campbells Creek and will include weed management, revegetation and waterway fencing.

Coliban Water Service Delivery executive manager Neil Burns said the authority regretted the incidents and had conducted a review to ensure that the authority’s clean up procedures meets EPA expectations.

“Our review has indicated that a number of our sewer pump stations across the region potentially pose an unacceptable risk to the environment and we are now examining options for improvements,” he said.

The water authority was also ordered to pay costs of $8421.