Water company agrees to pay Gloucester Wildlife Trust and Severn Rivers Trust following pollution incidents investigated by Environment Agency.
Severn Trent Water Ltd has contributed a total of £2,277,424 to two countryside charities in relation to two pollution offences, as the result ‘enforcement undertakings’ (EU) completed by the Environment Agency.
One offence involve unauthorised discharges of sewage from Blackminster Wastewater Treatment Works in Evesham, Worcs, into Broadway Brook on June 12 and August 20 2022. The other offence relates to the failure to comply with a permit condition involving permitted levels of ammonia in effluent at Cheltenham (Hayden) Wastewater Treatment Works in Gloucestershire on and before September 13, 2021.
For certain environmental offences such as these, the Environment Agency is able to use an enforcement undertaking instead of prosecution or fine. The EU is a legally binding voluntary agreement, where firms and individuals who have damaged the environment or operated outside of legislative requirements can offer to complete actions which will address the cause and effect of their offending. That includes making a payment to an appropriate project.
In response to the discharges at Blackminister Wastewater Treatment Works, Seven Trent Water agreed to pay £1,500,000 to Gloucestershire Wildlife Trust. It agreed to pay Gloucestershire Wildlife Trust a further £327,424 in relation to the incident in Cheltenham, plus £450,000 to Severn Rivers Trust.
In both cases, the company also agreed to cover the Environment Agency’s costs and to carry out actions to stop offending, prevent a recurrence and/or restore any harm.
Geoff Craig, Environment Manager for the Environment Agency, says: ‘While we continue to prosecute and sanction the most serious offences, Enforcement Undertakings allow companies to put right what went wrong and channel money directly into the environment.
‘This figure of over £2.2m will be invested back into the local area to enhance the environment, delivering real benefits for people and wildlife. We are continuing to drive meaningful improvements in water company performance, hold persistent offenders to account and ultimately create a cleaner water environment.’
A spokesperson for Gloucestershire Wildlife Trust adds: ‘The funding will support environmental restoration work in Gloucestershire, particularly the Severn Treescapes project, helping to plant and restore trees across the landscape. Trees play an important role in protecting rivers by filtering pollutants before they reach waterways, stabilising riverbanks, reducing soil erosion and helping to slow the flow of water during heavy rainfall.
‘Alongside this work, we will continue to campaign for stronger action to protect our rivers, including through initiatives such as the Clean Water Now campaign, and work with partners to improve water systems.’
A spokesperson for Severn Rivers Trust says: ‘Enforcement undertakings provide an opportunity to deliver targeted environmental improvements that help address the impacts of pollution and strengthen the resilience of our rivers.
‘At Severn Rivers Trust, the funding secured will enable us to deliver a package of practical river restoration measures across the Severn catchment. Through river habitat restoration, floodplain reconnection, wetland creation and working with landowners to reduce diffuse pollution, these projects will help create healthier, more resilient river catchments.’
Photo by Leo Rivas / Unsplash
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