The Ravensdown Fertiliser Co-operative company was yesterday fined $15,000 for an incident late last year when its acid-making plant near Napier accidentally discharged a plume of noxious gas.
The fertiliser and acid manufacturing plant is sited close to the foreshore at Awatoto, about 5km south of Napier, andhas previous prosecutions and abatement notices for discharging fluoride and other noxious gases.
Judge Craig Thompson, who presided over the Environment Court hearing brought by Hawke's Bay Regional Council, said the company's history of incidents involving excessive discharges of fluoride and other noxious gases was not something it could be proud of.
In 2004 Ravensdown was fined $15,000, and in October 2006 it was fined a total of $37,000 for two offences.
Regional council lawyer David O'Connor said that on November 23 last year the council received calls from two of its compliance officers who saw an unusually smoky discharge from the firm's acid plant stack.
Another call was received from Brookfield Farms orchard, about 2km away, saying an acid cloud had engulfed its property.
The council advised workers in the orchard to evacuate.
A wind shift then moved the cloud to the west where crop and food contractors were working.
A company investigation showed human error had led to the gas discharge. Ravensdown was also ordered to pay the regional council's investigation costs of $2660.
