September 24, 2013
Cougar Energy was today fined $75,000 after pleading guilty in the Brisbane Magistrates Court to three charges linked to its failed underground coal gasification project near Coolabunia.
Chief Magistrate Tim Carmody also ordered that the company pay $40,000 in costs. No conviction was recorded.
The charges alleged Cougar breached the conditions of its environmental authority by failing to notify authorities for three weeks after traces of benzene were detected in water samples near the UCG site.
Cougar received confirmation of the sample results on June 7, 2010, but failed to notify the department of the releases until June 30, 2010.
The charges were first mentioned in Kingaroy Magistrates Court in July 2011. After multiple adjournments, they were transferred to Brisbane.
At the time the charges were first laid, Acting Director-General of the then-Department of Environment and Resource Management Terry Wall said each charge could attract a maximum fine of $832,500.
Environment and Heritage Protection Minister Andrew Powell said this afternoon the sentence related to the rupture of a production well in the early stages of Cougar’s UCG pilot trial.
“The issue of water contamination is very serious and this fine reflects the importance of meeting strict environmental conditions,” Mr Powell said.
“Cougar failed to properly install the production well to a standard necessary to ensure compliance with its environmental authority.
“As a result, Cougar released the UCG contaminants of benzene and toluene to groundwater, and failed to notify the department of the contamination within a reasonable timeframe.
“Mining companies have an obligation to notify the State Government of an incident as soon as possible, as the protection of our environment and communities is paramount.”
Mr Powell said that under its current environmental authority, Cougar was required to decommission and rehabilitate its UCG cavity at Coolabunia.
In July, Cougar announced it was dropping its civil actions against the State Government.
[UPDATED 7:00pm]
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