15 Apr 2026
Photo by Colby Winfield on Unsplash Following an Environment Agency investigation, United Utilities pleaded guilty to introducing thousands of fish into Bessy Brook, near Bolton, without a permit. The EA says this sentence marks a regulatory milestone as the first time a water company has been sentenced under The Keeping and Introduction of Fish (England and River Esk Catchment Area) […]
17 Mar 2026
Photo by Ivan Bandura South West Water has pleaded guilty to 18 charges of water pollution spanning six years, in a prosecution brought by the Environment Agency that concluded at Plymouth Magistrates Court on 12 March 2026. Sentencing is expected on 4 June 2026. The charges relate to illegal discharges including raw sewage spills at five […]
03 Feb 2026
Photo by Fotogra The Marine Management Organisation has secured its second successful prosecution for breaches of Marine Protected Area byelaws, following a guilty plea at North Tyneside Magistrates Court relating to illegal fishing activity inside the Canyons Marine Conservation Zone. On 29 January 2026, Marcos Gonzales-Rivera, a Spanish national and master of the British-registered […]
23 Jan 2020
The Sunday Times December 22 2019, 12:01am. Our finest waterways are becoming unusable, and not one prosecution is in progress over fouling last year. Water companies are polluting some of Britain’s most picturesque rivers, from the Windrush in the Cotswolds to the Aire in Yorkshire, without facing a penalty for the vast majority of offences. […]