27 Mar 2019

Environment Agency  ‘Severn Trent Water Limited was sentenced at Birmingham Crown Court on 22 March 2019, for the incident which occurred in November 2013. In addition to the fine, the company was ordered to pay prosecution costs of £50,693 and a victim surcharge of £120. The incident occurred due to a blockage in the company’s […]

15 Jan 2019

Bob Earll ‘This is a huge issue and there is a growing awareness of the problems and costs. Whether a labelling scheme will solve this is another matter. ‘Fine to flush’ sends a conflicted message. Time will tell. Better than what went before. Seeing the problem first hand from an Anglian video is interesting’ Water […]

10 Jan 2019

EA & Defra ‘2015 pollution killed dozens of fish – Defra ‘Thames Water has been fined £2million after raw sewage polluted two Oxfordshire streams, killing almost 150 fish. The sewage also flooded a nearby garden.   Judge Peter Ross, at Oxford Crown Court on 21 December, ruled the incident in 2015 as a high-end, category three […]

03 Dec 2018

Water pollution in the River Thames The Environment Agency’s successful prosecution of Thames Water over a series of major pollution incidents on the River Thames was the subject of a new documentary aired by BBC 1 yesterday. Defenders UK follows the work of enforcement officers from various agencies as they work to protect the public, with the […]

08 Aug 2018

Three articles Ofwat fines Thames over leakage, United Utilities cancel their hosepipe ban and Yorkshire focus on leakage detection to meet future demand. The heatwave and drought has drawn the spotlight of publicity and attention on the water companies.   Ofwat confirms £120m package of payments and penalties for Thames Water following leakage failures Following consultation, […]

20 Feb 2017

Thames Water will face its “biggest ever fine” after pumping millions of gallons of untreated sewage into the River Thames, a judge has warned. The company admitted water pollution and other offences at sewage facilities in Buckinghamshire and Oxfordshire. Fish and birds died following the spills in 2013 and 2014.One fisherman lost thousands and went […]

04 Jan 2017

These fines are piling up given recent changes in the scale of fines allowed, highlighting failures in investment and systems. The Environment Agency think this trend will decline up to 2020. Southern Water fined record £2m for sewage leak on Kent beaches Thanet council forced to close beaches for nine days due to ‘catastrophic’ leakage […]