The pollutant identified in the summons is the insecticide Electra 225. The relevant polluted waters are identified as an open canal that flowed to Prospect Creek ("the creek") near Wetherill Park and downstream thereof.
The defendant's operations and background
8 The defendant operates a transport business based in Orange known as Hopley's Transport. The defendant owns one third of the business and the defendant's parents own the remaining share. The defendant's business is engaged in frequent transport of goods between Orange and Sydney. The defendant has an arrangement with a Sydney courier company named Ricko's Express Courier Service Pty Ltd ("Ricko's") to use its premises at Arnott Place, Wetherill Park as a temporary storage facility.
9 Hopley's Transport was engaged by Farmoz Pty Ltd ("Farmoz") on 5 February 2002 to transport its products. Farmoz develops, manufactures and distributes pesticides and fertilizers. On 30 January 2002 the Logistics Manager of Farmoz, Mr Robert Kalf, received an order for Electra 225 through its Adelaide agent Wilchem Pty Ltd. The order was to be sent to Menindee, New South Wales which is 100km east of Broken Hill. Farmoz did not have the stock and arranged Autopak Formulation Pty Ltd ("Autopak") to fill the order. Autopak manufactures Electra 225 at its premises in St Marys, New South Wales. Mr Kalf arranged for Hopley's Transport to collect the order from Autopak and to transport it to Menindee.
Facts surrounding the offences
10 Mr Barrett testified that on Friday 8 February 2002 he received instructions via radio from the defendant while driving through the Blue Mountains from Orange to Sydney to collect a consignment of chemicals from Autopak's premises and to take the load to Ricko's.
11 Mr Barrett arrived at Autopak and saw the dangerous goods labels on 4 intermediate bulk containers ("IBCs") containing the order of Electra 225. Each IBC holds 1000 litres. Accordingly Pt 18 of the Dangerous Goods Regulations applies, that is dangerous goods exceeding a volume of 3000 litres must be transported by a licensed driver: see cl 18.1 and cl 18.4 of the Dangerous Goods Regulations.
12 Mr Barrett testified that he realised that the consignment comprised dangerous goods which required a driver to be licensed to transport such goods. Mr Barrett said that he telephoned the defendant from St Marys to inform him that he did not hold a current licence to transport dangerous goods. Mr Barrett testified that he made a second telephone call to the defendant to inform him that he did not have the correct placards to mark the vehicle as one which was carrying dangerous goods, as required by Pt 7 of the Dangerous Goods Regulations and chapter 7 of the Dangerous Goods Code. The defendant allegedly told Mr Bennett to find some placards in Autopak's dispatch.
13 The defendant does not recall such conversations taking place, which is inconsistent with the statement the defendant provided to the prosecutor's investigators on 6 March 2002. Additionally the defendant testified that if dangerous goods are loaded the usual practice for drivers is to ask dispatch for the correct stickers to mark the vehicle as one which is transporting dangerous goods.
14 Pursuant to the defendant's instructions Mr Barrett loaded the consignment and conveyed it from St Marys to Wetherill Park. Mr Barrett arrived at Ricko's and parked the vehicle outside the premises which is located at the top end of a steep incline of a cul-de-sac. The defendant had instructed Mr Barrett to use a forklift to unload the 4 IBCs believing that Mr Barrett was licensed to drive a forklift. In fact no such licence was held by Mr Barrett.
15 Mr Barrett located a forklift which had extension arms attached to the forklift tynes to allow deeper loads to be carried. Mr Barrett could not remove the extension arms and proceeded to unload the IBCs but experienced difficulty in positioning the extension arms under the first IBC ("the IBC"). The extension arms wobbled when the IBC was lifted from the truck, fell from the forklift, struck the ground and split open. Electra 225 flowed from the IBC down the cul-de-sac, into the gutter and into a side entry to the stormwater system. The stormwater system flows to the creek.
16 Mr Barrett attempted to lift the IBC on its side to prevent further discharge of Electra 225. Employees of Ricko's immediately came to assist Mr Barrett. Once the IBC was able to be placed upright, it was found that only a small amount of Electra 225 remained in the IBC.
17 Mr Jansen, Ricko's Operations Manager, was unaware of the contents in the IBC. Believing that the substance was acid Mr Jansen ordered another Ricko's employee to use the fire hose to wash the Electra 225 off Mr Barrett and themselves, and additionally from the forklift. Such water flowed the same path of the spilt Electra 225 into the stormwater system.
18 Mr Jansen and Mr Barrett then made a series of telephone calls to obtain advice. Mr Jansen telephoned the defendant and informed him of the incident. The defendant left urgent messages at Fazmoz and Autopak to advise them of the chemical spill. The defendant then called the New South Wales Fire Brigade, Hazmat (the Hazardous Materials division of the New South Wales Fire Brigade) and the prosecutor.
19 Officers of the New South Wales Fire Brigade, Hazmat, the local council and the prosecutor came to Ricko's in response to the telephone calls and discussed the possibilities of blocking the stormwater system to prevent the spilt Electra 225 from discharging into the creek. It began to rain and then a violent storm broke. Following the storm it was decided by such officers that the spilt Electra 225 would have been flushed into the creek.