The blitz is part of annual ‘Get the Site Right’ campaign, a joint initiative of the NSW State Government, local councils, WaterNSW and the Parramatta River Catchment Group to prevent the pollution of local waterways.

Following the passage of the Environment Protection Legislation Amendment (Stronger Regulation and Penalties) Bill 2024, failure to adequately secure building materials can now attract on-the-spot fines for individuals of $15,000 for the first offence and $22,500 for a second offence. For companies, the penalty for a breach is now $30,000 for the first offence and $45,000 for a second.

Randwick Mayor Philipa Veitch said that the loss of building materials such as sediment, concrete, roof sheeting, insulation padding is costly for builders and can have significant impacts on the environment.

“People who live in or visit the Randwick City area really value the pristine marine environment. It’s up to all of us – as individuals and as a community – to do all we can to protect our waterways for future generations.

“If construction materials are not properly secured on site they can wash or blow away during strong weather events, blocking stormwater drains and having a terrible impact on the health of our waterways and marine life.

“That’s why, under NSW law, builders and developers have a particular duty to put in place the proper controls on-site to prevent pollution incidents.

“Most construction operators want to do the right thing by the environment that they live and work in, but some do not. We hope the new penalties introduced by the state government will provide a further incentive for builders and developers to prevent pollution.”

In the year to date, Randwick City Council officers issued six fines under the Protection of the Environment Operations Act for offences resulting in pollution of water or land, a combined total of $48,000 in fines. A further 24 fines have been issued to builders or developers for various site management issues, such as failure to properly secure building materials on construction sites.

As part of the month-long campaign by over 20 local councils across the state, Randwick City Council inspectors will accompany officers from the NSW Environmental Protection Agency, Department of Planning Housing and Infrastructure to conduct inspections of building sites for a one-day compliance blitz on Thursday 16 May.

2023’s Get the Site Right blitz saw a six per cent increase in compliance between the May and October campaigns and the taskforce is aiming for even higher levels of compliance this year.

Information for builders and renovators on ways to properly secure building materials on site is available on Council’s website and in Get the Site Right materials.

Members of the public are encouraged to report pollution incidents, including poor sediment control, to their local council or the EPA’s 24/7 Environment Line on 131 555.

Randwick Council’s stormwater education website can be found at endbeachpollution.sydney.