Mobil Refining Australia (Pty) Ltd were convicted in the Melbourne Magistrates’ Court, during December 2008, on one charge of causing an environmental hazard.

The company pleaded guilty to the charge, and was ordered to pay $350,000 to fund environmental projects.The offence arose when the Mobil pipeline running under Champion Rd, Newport, corroded and subsequently leaked unleaded petrol. EPA investigations revealed the leak could have started in December 2004 and remained undetected until December 2006, when nearby residents became aware of a strong petrol odour.

The recovery of petrol began in January 2007 and from that time until early December, more than 480,000 litres of petrol has been removed from the site, equal to about 3,000 litres a week. The petrol is reprocessed by Mobil.

Of the funds awarded by the court $210,000 will go to Williamstown High School for the Jawbone Marine Sanctuary Stormwater Recycling Wetlands project (which aims to reduce and intercept stormwater inputs into the marine sanctuary).

Melbourne Water Corporation receives $110,000 for its drain spotters project, which establishes, trains and equips teams to monitor detect and report pollution events around drains.

The remaining $30,000 goes to the Jawbone Marine Sanctuary Care Group Inc for the sanctuary enhancement project, which is aiming to establish an ecological monitoring program.

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