Blueberry growers and an earthmoving operator accused of building an unauthorised water supply on a farm could be damned with $6.5 million in fines.
Two blueberry farm owners and the construction contractor from Coffs Harbour, on the NSW north coast, have been charged with a string of water offences.
The trio face combined fines of $6.5 million if found guilty of offences including building an unauthorised dam without approval and carrying out unauthorised works on waterfront land.
The Natural Resources Access Regulator will allege in court the construction was an intentional breach of laws designed to protect waterways, investigation and enforcement director Lisa Stockley said.
"This is a situation where we allege they actively took actions that were contradictory to the rules," Ms Stockley told AAP.
"They were aware of it and they did something different because it suited their business needs."
The case was the regulator's third dam-related prosecution from the north coast in one year.
A commercial tomato producer from Kempsey was fined nearly $300,000 in the NSW Local Court in early 2025 for constructing and using dams without approval and clearing vegetation around endangered wetlands.
The regulator also charged a blueberry farmer and an earthmoving company from Eungai Creek, north of Kempsey, for allegedly building an irrigation dam on a significant creek without approval.
That case is due for sentencing before the Local Court in February, with a maximum penalty of $660,000.
Ms Stockley said these kinds of offences were not uncommon on the north coast, which is a prime horticulture region.
The regulator was dealing with 16 active investigations into unauthorised water works, some which had been reported and others picked up through its "eyes in the skies" program.
The program uses satellite imagery, spatial data and drones to monitor changes to waterways and the landscape.
"Waterfront land is extremely sensitive and so when people do work ... it can have serious effects on downstream users and also the environment," Ms Stockley said.
"We require people to seek approvals for work on waterfront land, making sure they're entitled to have that dam on their property and to hold that water."
The Coffs Harbour case is due for a directions hearing in the Land and Environment Court on February 13.
