Penalties and powers to investigate environmental crimes in NSW will be boosted by the biggest reform of environmental legislation by the NSW Parliament in decades.
Environmental Offences - Court makes orders under s 10(1)(a) of the Crimes (Sentencing Procedure) Act 1999
On 29 September 2023 the Land and Environment Court handed down its decision in Natural Resources Access Regulator v Kimber; Natural Resources Access Regulator v Kimber [2023] NSWLEC 101.
In this case the Court considered what sentences ought to be imposed upon two individuals who each pleaded guilty to offences under section 60B of the Water Management Act 2000 (WM Act).
For one of the first times ever in a case involving offences under the WM Act, the Court ordered that the charges against each defendant be dismissed under section 10(1)(a) of the Crimes (Sentencing Procedure) Act 1999 (CSP Act) without proceeding to conviction.