Chief Executive of the Office of Environment and Heritage v Turnbull [2023] NSWLEC 137
The NSW Land and Environment Court has imposed a fine of $405,000 on Mr Grant Turnbull who pleaded guilty to the offence of clearing native vegetation under s 12(2) of the now repealed Native Vegetation Act 2003 (NSW). This is one of the larger fines imposed on an individual for environmental crime by the NSW Land and Environment Court.
Background
Until 2020, Mr Grant Wesley Turnbull was the registered proprietor of a rural property near Moree called ‘Colorado’. Prior to Mr Turnbull’s purchase of Colorado in January 2012, the property had primarily been used for the grazing of cattle. Approximately 86% of the property was uncropped and comprised predominantly native vegetation comprising native trees, native shrubs, and native groundcover.
The native vegetation on the property varied in structure from woodland or open forest to scattered trees or, in places, thickets of scrub, with a predominately native understorey.
It was agreed by the parties that Grant Turnbull’s intention in purchasing Colorado was to clear the property of native vegetation in order to convert it from a grazing property into a farm to be used for the growing of commercial crops.
Unlawful Clearing
Under s 12(2) of the now repealed Native Vegetation Act 2003 (NSW), any person who carried out or authorised the carrying out of clearing of native vegetation without approval was guilty of an offence and liable to the maximum penalty available at the time under the former s 126 of the Environmental Planning and Assessment Act 1979 (NSW). At the date of the offence, the maximum penalty for an unlawful clearing offence was $1,100,000.
Mr Ian Turnbull was the late father of the defendant in these proceedings. Ian Turnbull undertook the first tranche of unlawful clearing at Colorado in 2011 and 2012. Approximately 421 hectare of the property was cleared during this period and subsequently ploughed, sprayed with herbicide, and sown with wheat and barley. Duggan J found that the defendant was part of the decision-making in respect of the clearing carried out by his father during this period.
Ian Turnbull was in found guilty of murdering a NSW environmental compliance officer in 2014 over illegal native vegetation clearing and died in jail.
The second tranche of unlawful clearing at Colorado was carried out by Grant Turnbull between August 2012 and January 2013. In total, the area of native vegetation which was unlawfully cleared over this period was 103.6 hectares, involving the removal of an approximately 1,086 trees as well as large quantities of other types of native vegetation including native understory plants and groundcover. The Defendant was convicted and fined $315,000 for this offence in 2017.
The 2023 proceedings related to a third instalment of illegal clearing. Between January 2014 and August 2014, the Defendant unlawfully removed approximately 4,430 trees over 508 hectares. The clearing involved pushing over trees and other woody plants using a bulldozer and the pushing of vegetation into stacks, burning the stacks, further raking to remove sticks and other felled vegetation, ploughing to destroy groundcover and small woody plants and then follow up ploughing to create a seedbed suitable for the sowing of crops.
Sentencing
Justice Duggan found that the clearing caused significant actual and likely harm caused to the environment and that this harm was reasonably foreseeable and considered the offending to be in the high mid-range of objective seriousness.
Accordingly, the Defendant was convicted as charged and ordered to pay a fine in the sum of $405,000.
This is one of the highest fines imposed on an individual for environmental crime by the NSW Land and Environment Court of which we are aware.
Jennifer Hughes, Ella Robertson