For too long, the North Coast Environmental Council’s John Jeayes said, have councils thought they could act with impunity.

On Friday the council’s former water and natural resources director Geoff Freeman was fined $57,000 and ordered to pay $167,500 in legal costs after being convicted of two offences under Section 175B (1) of the National Parks and Wildlife Act.

The offences related to Freeman’s authorisation of road works on land at Partridge Creek west of Port Macquarie Airport between September 15 and December 19, 2003, which damaged the habitat of two threatened species – the Eastern Chestnut Mouse and Grass Owl.

Mr Freeman pleaded not guilty but was convicted of the offences in July 2007. He was sentenced on Friday.

The council had previously pleaded guilty to three charges under Section 118D(1) of the National Parks and Wildlife Act and one charge under Section 200 of the Fisheries Management Act in relation to the roadworks.

The financially-troubled organisation was last week ordered to pay $274,000 in fines and costs for the incident. It will also cover Freeman’s personal legal costs. That amount is unspecified.

“For too long councils had allowed or caused clearing with breathtaking arrogance and this was typified at Port Macquarie,” Mr Jeayes said.

In the precedent-setting case, Mr Freeman is the first council director prosecuted individually for criminal breaches of the National Parks and Wildlife Act.

Justice Lloyd found Mr Freeman “on the balance of probabilities” had knowledge that the offence was being committed.

“I find that, although Mr Freeman’s error of judgement has landed him in this position, it is beyond doubt that in making that judgement he knew that the area was the habitat of the threatened species, that the construction of the roads could damage that habitat and his commission of the offence was therefore deliberate,” he said.