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Severn Trent has been fined £1.5 million by the Environment Agency (EA) for illegal sewage discharges in 2018.
The spills occurred at four wastewater treatment works in Worcestershire between February and August 2018.
The EA said the company failed to respond to alarms warning of a blockage, failed to adequately manage sewage sludge, and failed to adequately manage a situation when a piece of equipment failed. These resulted in discharges into a number of watercourses in Worcestershire.
EA prosecutor James Puzey said one spillage from a treatment works at Blackminster, near Evesham caused by a blockage resulted in approximately 360,000 litres of sewage being discharged to nearby Broadway Brook before Severn Trent staff were able to take action.
Presiding district judge Strongman noted that: “Bad weather played a part but more should have been done to cope with the problems by way of spare capacity.”
Since these incidents, the company has changed its management structure and provided better technical support. It has also invested in its plants to improve treatment efficiency.
A Severn Trent spokesperson said: “We take our role in protecting and caring for our region’s rivers extremely seriously, which is why we have consistently been recognised as a leading UK water company and awarded the very highest 4 star status by the Environment Agency. These were historic issues that occurred in 2018 and we self-reported them to the Environment Agency at the time; we have been open and transparent with them throughout the process. We accept and take seriously the court’s findings; we have learned the lessons from the incidents to ensure that we continue to work to the highest environmental standards.”
As well as the fine, Severn Trent was ordered to pay more than £58,000 of prosecution costs.
Last month, the EA launched a joint investigation with Ofwat into wastewater treatment works across the industry following allegations of illegal discharges from combined sewer overflows (CSOs).
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