Source : Perth Now news
A farmer has been fined $225,000 for clearing vast stretches of native vegetation, claiming he could not prove efforts to regenerate his land due to fears about a murderous fugitive.
Grain farmer Sheldon Jeffrey Dalton was on Monday convicted of unlawfully clearing nearly 950 hectares on his property at Wallanthery, in central NSW, between May and October 2023.
That is roughly the equivalent of 570 Sydney Cricket Grounds.
Dalton admitted to clearing the land using machinery and fire, knowing the property contained native vegetation that was habitat to the threatened species malleefowl.
NSW Land and Environment Court Justice Sarah Pritchard convicted Dalton of two charges, finding he caused “actual environmental harm”.
Dalton expressed remorse, saying the charges weighed heavily upon him and his wife and he had never before breached environmental laws in 40 years of farming.
He told the court he wanted to photograph burnt areas on his adjacent property, called Scotts Craig, to demonstrate efforts to regenerate his land.
But Dalton could not go to the remote area over fears about fugitive Julian Ingram, who once lived on Scotts Craig and was thought to be hiding in the region, the court was told.
Ingram was wanted for shooting and killing his former partner, her unborn child, her aunt and her friend in nearby Lake Cargelligo on January 22.
Ingram, a council gardener, was missing for more than 100 days until his decomposed body was found in dense bushland in May.
Dalton said police told him not to go out on his property, preventing him from documenting land recovery efforts for the court.
“I was told to remain indoors and not to be anywhere in the vicinity,” Dalton told the court in an affidavit.
The farmer had hired an agriculture business consultant to draft an invasive native species notification to authorities, the court was told.
The notification said he was clearing invasive plants such as hop bush, turpentine and white cypress pine.
But Dalton also destroyed ecologically valuable woodlands and shrubs, damaging the habitat of the threatened bird.
Justice Pritchard issued the fine and ordered his offences be published in prominent notices in several rural newspapers.
The fine acted as deterrence to other producers, ensuring it outweighed any possible commercial benefits of illegal land clearing, Justice Pritchard said.
“I am mindful that the sentences imposed should operate as a powerful factor in preventing the commission of similar crimes by those who might otherwise be tempted by the prospect that only a light penalty will be imposed,” she said.
The public notice warned of “serious consequences” for clearing and urged farmers to consult with Local Land Services if they were considering removing vegetation.
