A five-day electronic music festival in Elmore operated without approval for late-night noise, the Environment Protection Authority has confirmed.
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A number of direct and indirect complaints were received by Campaspe Shire Council and the EPA regarding inappropriate noise levels at Earthcore over the weekend, some of which came in the early hours of Sunday morning.
EPA chief executive officer Nial Finegan said at the time the event began, EPA had not received an application for a social significance approval, the mechanism that places limitations on times and noise levels for public events.
Social significance approval is required for events that operate outside of the hours of 12pm-11pm, according to the EPA.
“EPA will be contacting Campaspe Shire Council regarding the Earthcore event and the process by which permissions were granted for it to proceed,” he said.
“EPA has received complaints about noise levels at Earthcore and is determining an appropriate course of action.”
EPA also confirmed no officials were present at the festival, which ran from November 23-27, to monitor noise levels.
Campaspe Shire Council general manager of regulatory and community services, Paul McKenzie, said council approved a place of public entertainment permit for the event, which focused on emergency management and facilities for patrons, and not amenity impacts like noise.
“We advised them (Earthcore) that they'd require one of those (social significance approval) if they operated outside Environment Protection Act conditions,” he said, adding council had given event organisers the appropriate information to apply for approval.
Elmore Events Centre, which hosted the festival, had a pre-existing planning permit to hold outdoor events, dating back to the 1980s, Mr McKenzie said.
“Given the age of this permit it doesn't include those things (amenity impacts like noise). Most modern permits contain references to noise and specific hours,” he said.
“Therefore in these cases there is a default setting to fall back on, which is the Environment Protection Act, which contains standards for noise and dust, among others.”
Mr McKenzie said the shire would have a debrief in the coming days, to which the EPA will be invited to “addresses any confusion”.
Related: Earthcore headed to Elmore
It is currently unclear what course of action the EPA will take.
Campaspe Shire councillor Leigh Wilson stopped at particular spots close to the Elmore Events Centre on Saturday, suggesting some areas were distinctly louder than others.
“I’m no expert on sound but it appeared weather conditions played a role in whether it was louder or quieter,” said Cr Wilson, Rochester Ward representative.
The experts, he said, were the EPA, whom he understood would be at the festival to monitor noise levels.
“A permit was issued with requirements from the events people to comply with noise restrictions and I look forward to receiving information from the EPA as they are the agency to handle that,” he said.
Cr Wilson said the primary concern of nearby residents prior to the event was noise.
“There was a lot of controversy around whether council should have issued the permit (for Earthcore) and I’m confident the (council) staff followed appropriate state and planning building laws and reviewed the application with a great level of scrutiny,” he said.
The Bendigo Advertiser asked to see a copy of the place of public entertainment permit granted for the festival, but the Campaspe Shire Council refused, stating it wasn’t a public document.
Earthcore and the Elmore Events Centre were contacted for comment.
