Distillation under atmospheric pressure, as the temperature of
Pollution from petroleum activities
Offences and penalties
Under the Northern Territory Petroleum Act there are several environmental offences that relate to pollution and waste within 1km of a pipeline. It is an offence to release contaminants and waste materials in circumstances where serious or material environmental harm or environmental nuisance is caused and the person who caused the harm knew or could reasonably be expected to have known that the harm would occur.
Contaminants under the Petroleum Act are solids, liquids, gases or any combination of those substances, including noise, smoke, dust, fumes, odour or heat.
Waste material means a solid, liquid or gas or a mixture of those substances that is left over, surplus or is an unwanted by-product. Serious and material environmental harm and environmental nuisance have the same meaning as under the Waste Management and Pollution Control Act.
The penalties for the offences relate to the level of environmental harm which has been caused. There are four levels of penalties set by the Environmental Offences and Penalties Act. There are more severe penalties where the offence was committed intentionally.
The most serious environmental offence under the Petroleum Act is where a person during the conduct of a petroleum operation intentionally does an act, or fails to do an act, that causes the release of a contaminant or waste material on, above or under land if:
he or she knows, or ought reasonably be expected to know, that serious environmental harm or material environmental harm will or might result from the release of the contaminant or waste material; and
the contaminant or waste material causes serious environmental harm to land all of which is within one kilometre of the site where the contaminant is released.
There are similar offences for causing serious or material harm without intent and for causing an environmental nuisance. There are defences for these offences.
