Family Sues Mount Gambier Racing Club Over Concealed Rubbish Pit

Dumped veterinary syringes, horse shoes and rubbish are at the centre of a lawsuit between a family and a regional South Australian horse racing club.

Couple Jacob and Kylie Malthouse have launched legal action against the Mount Gambier Racing Club in the Environment, Resources and Development (ERD) Court, after they discovered a large rubbish pit concealed under land formerly owned by the club.

The Malthouses purchased the land, overlooking the Mount Gambier Racecourse at Glenburnie, in 2024 to build a new home as part of a larger subdivision.

But in January 2025, earthworks uncovered a large rubbish pit underneath where they planned to build the house.

The Malthouse's ERD Court claim alleged the racing club dug a pit on the land some time between 2003 and 2013, which it used to supply sand or loam to the racecourse.

The claim alleged the pit was then used as a dumping ground by the racing club.

It alleged the contents of the pit included veterinary syringes, horseshoes, domestic waste, tree stumps and concrete.

The claim also alleged the pit was then covered and hidden some time around 2013.

"On the first blow, they [the home builders] found rubbish and we thought, 'Oh that's okay, we'll just see what happens,'" Mr Malthouse said.

"It was enormous. It was 4.9 metres deep and you couldn't even see the excavator in the ground.

"It looked like a tip site; it had temporary fencing, we had the neighbours complaining, we had the poor farmers over the back."

'Created a risk'

The Malthouse family is seeking about $114,000 in compensation from the racing club related to the cost of removing and disposing of the waste and remediating the soil, as well as an amount to compensate the family for time spent cleaning the rubbish.

Between January and March 2025, some of the waste was removed to facilitate the Malthouse's home build and is currently stockpiled on land owned by the racing club, with its consent.

Alternatively, the claim called for the club to pay the family more than $66,000 and pay to remove the waste currently stockpiled.

The court documents alleged the club contravened the Environment Protection Act by using the pit as a dump site, saying it caused environmental harm.

It also alleged the site was operated as a landfill depot without a licence.

Club rejects claim

The claim alleged the racing club had offered to pay $10,000 to the family for remediation works in February last year.

But in an email the next day, the club retracted the offer and advised it did not accept liability for the waste or the cost of land remediation.

The club is yet to file a defence to the claim with the ERD Court.

A spokesperson for the club said it would respond to the Malthouse's claim "in due course".

"Suffice to say the MGRC denies the allegations made by Mr and Mrs Malthouse or that it has any liability to them," they said.

"Further, it denies any breach of any obligation under the Environment Protection Act."

Mrs Malthouse said her family wanted the matter resolved.

"Instead, we spent weekends with garbage bags battling the wind trying to pick up loose bits of flying rubbish.

"It's just total confusion and shock that we're constantly battling this."