[Warrnambool Standard, Thur 04 March, 2010, p. 3] A VICTORIAN company faces a bill of $100,000 for failing to control serrated tnssock on its property. The Department of Primary Industries (DPI) successfully prosecuted Whittlesea Properties Pty Ltd with one charge of failing to comply with a land management notice to control the regionally prohibited weed; and one charge of failing to notify of works undertaken. Whittlesea Properties was convicted and fined $29,000 and was ordered to pay costs of $70,800. Most of the costs were incurred when the DPI engaged contractors to treat the weed to prevent further spread.
The offences relate to a 100-hectare property at Rockbank, on the Western Highway, on the western outskirts of Melbourne. Magistrate Frank Jones described it as the worst case of serrated tussock neglect that he had ever dealt with. "This company has a long history of neglecting their responsibilities to control serrated tnssock on their land, and this cannot be tolerated," he said.
Serrated tnssock covers more than two million hectares of land in south-east Australia and modelling suggests it could infest about 32 million hectares if not controlled.