Southern Water has been fined £2.4m after multiple incidents of
sewage pollution. It's the Environment Agency's second successful
prosecution of the company this year, with other cases going
through court.
Weeks after they were given a £7.1m penalty for
pollution that closed several beaches in Thanet for days, the
company has been back in court to face more charges, this time
for harming the environment around Faversham and Whitstable
between 2019 and 2021.
Sitting at Bromley magistrates' court, district judge Stephen
Leake heard Southern Water was charged with releasing untreated
sewage, sewage debris, diesel and waste matter into the sea and a
brook across a 2-year period. This included two incidents
happening at the same time in different locations.
In July 2019, people saw and smelled what turned out to be diesel
in Swalecliffe Brook in Whitstable. Environment Agency staff were
sent to the scene, laying absorbent booms to limit pollution from
Southern Water's local wastewater treatment plant.
The diesel got into the brook and then the sea after a generator
leaked. It was the summer holiday season, but the public were
warned to keep themselves and their pets out of the water.
Lindsay Faulkner, environment manager for the Environment Agency
in Kent, said:
We have continued to press Southern Water to improve performance
through 700 inspections of their sites in the past year,
detailing 400 improvements they needed to take. We will not
hesitate to prosecute for wrongdoing like here.
The pollution and the disruption to local businesses, and people
wanting to enjoy days out, could have been avoided if Southern
Water managed operations better. They didn't have the checks in
place to deal with problems.
Water companies must learn to identify and fix problems before
the environment pays the price. We will continue to hold Southern
Water to account.
Across 3 days in March 2020, Southern Water released untreated
sewage into Faversham Creek from another treatment station after
pumps stopped working. Southern Water also failed to report the
initial circumstances of the incident to the Environment Agency,
limiting what investigators could find out.
On the same day, Swalecliffe Brook in Whitstable was hit again,
this time with sewage carried into the sea. Environment Agency
officers again went out. They found sewage and debris flowing
under the main gates of the treatment plant in Brook Road, over a
grass verge and into the water.
Then in October 2020, an almost identical incident.
At a hearing in April this year, Medway magistrates' court heard
further pollution incidents happened in Whitstable in August
2021, discharging into the sea directly or via Swalecliffe
Brook. The incidents occurred only weeks
after the company
was fined a record £90m for thousands of illegal sewage
discharges off the south coast.
The beleaguered brook had untreated sewage pouring into it from
Brook Road wastewater pumping station where investigators found
around 70 dead fish, including eels. Later the same month, there
was more pollution, this time from Diamond Road combined sewer
overflow.
Canterbury City Council put signs up at beaches in Tankerton and
Herne Bay, warning against swimming for nearly a week afterwards.
The discharge affected coastal waters near Whitstable Harbour, a
designated shellfishery.
In addition to the fine of £2,416.666.67, district judge Leake
ordered Southern Water to pay £69,894.04 in costs, and a victim
surcharge of £190.
Southern Water pleaded guilty in April to all five charges under
regulations 12(1)(b) and 38(1)(a) of the Environmental Permitting
(England and Wales) Regulations 2016. Southern Water pleaded
guilty at Medway magistrates' court on 7 April. A further
pollution incident at Faversham in December 2019 was taken into
account at sentencing.
Background:
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In July, the Environment Agency announced legal proceedings
against Southern Water and seven ex-staff over
alleged breaches of environmental permits and charges of
conspiracy to defraud.
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Southern Water will appear in court in December in relation
to unrelated pollution incidents at Herne Bay, where 49 homes
and businesses were flooded with sewage, and near Canterbury,
in Kent, and near Andover, in Hampshire.
-
The Environment Agency has concluded more than 70
prosecutions against water and sewerage companies since 2015,
securing fines of more than £150m.
-
Water companies cannot raise prices to offset fines. Instead,
fines should reduce profits, dividends, and executive
bonuses, creating internal pressure for cultural and
operational change.
