A Musk mineral water company has dismissed concerns it was untruthfully attempting to gain a permit for 1040 B-Double truck movements a year by claiming those loads were milk.
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Black Mount Natural Spring Water owner Tim Carey said a permit application deferred in last week’s council meeting was accidentally made by a truck company his organisation dealt with.
Mr Carey confirmed his company made 3.5 truck movements a day with loads of water, loads that had been given council approval some time ago. He said Byford Trucks was attempting to sell his organisation tankers often used in the dairy industry, and had most likely made the application to Hepburn Shire Council preemptively and in error.
The development of Musk’s Black Mount Natural Spring Water has not been without controversy, with nearby farmers concerned that selling off large quantities of mineral water to commercial entities would deplete the local water table.
Coliban ward council candidate Sebastian Klein has also been following the company closely, raising concerns about what he claims are permit infringements.
Mr Klein claimed he had seen the company’s trucks operating outside of permit hours. He also raised concerns the company had not yet paid for road upgrades in the area – a condition the company agreed to in order to be granted a council permit.
Initial plans were to have the roadworks complete by March last year, but have been delayed several times.
However, Mr Carey said the works would begin by October 10, and that he planned to notify landowners shortly, with completion due some time in November.
The application for the B-Double truck movements on Wheelers Hill Road and Quines Road came before council last week while it was in caretaker mode ahead of next month’s election, causing alarm among incumbent councillors Mr Klein and Don Henderson.
“If there was a new dairy venture requiring 1040 movements a year, I’m pretty sure we would have been notified,” Mr Henderson said.
“I question the veracity of it.”
Birch ward candidate Kate Redwood voted against the motion to approve any of the B-Double applications made last week.
Ms Redwood has recently clarified her stance of large trucks travelling through Hepburn Shire, stating she believed their damage to roads and community amenity was greater than their economic benefit.
A number of B-Double applications have come before council in recent months. Last week, a company applied for 365 quarry trips each year along East Street in Daylesford, while another company requested approval for 365 log truck trips along Jubilee Road in Sulky. Both were approved.
“I speak against all of these applications. Until such time as we see them systematically deliver a benefit to the shire, I don’t think we should be supporting them,” Ms Redwood said.
Black Mount Natural Spring Water has a permit to operate trucks between 7am and 10pm. It was incorrectly reported in The Advocate last week the hours were 7am to 7pm.
