Yorkshire Water Faces Hefty Fine for Repeated Sewage Releases in Chesterfield Park
Yorkshire Water has been ordered to pay a substantial penalty exceeding £700,000 following its admission of guilt in three separate sewage pollution incidents. The offences occurred in Pools Brook country park, located near Chesterfield in Derbyshire, and resulted in significant environmental damage, including the death of fish and insects.
Details of the Three Pollution Events
The court was informed that the first incident took place on 1 October 2018. A rising main sewer pipe from the Pools Brook sewage pumping station burst due to severe corrosion, causing untreated sewage to spill from a manhole into the stream flowing through the park. This pollution event killed fish such as tench, pike, and roach in the park's pond, along with river insects, and affected water quality for over 600 metres.
The second incident occurred on 27 February 2019. A blockage, primarily composed of wet wipes, in a plastic foul sewer pipe led to pressure buildup at one of the pipe's joints. This eventually caused sewage to leak into a surface water pipe, which then entered the stream. While there was no evidence of fish fatalities, water quality was compromised for 700 metres.
The third incident happened on 7 August 2019. A failure of a joint coupling in the same plastic foul sewer pipe as the previous incident, but at a different location, resulted in sewage spilling into the surface water pipe and entering Pools Brook stream. Again, no fish deaths were documented, but water quality was impacted for more than 600 metres.
Environment Agency's Response and Company Statement
The Environment Agency highlighted that Yorkshire Water did not attend an interview for any of the three incidents. Alan Lovell, chair of the Environment Agency, stated, "Polluting the same stream three times in less than a year is unacceptable and we're pleased Yorkshire Water has now been dealt with by the courts following our investigation. We expect full compliance and are committed to taking robust enforcement action where we see serious breaches."
A spokesperson for Yorkshire Water expressed regret, saying, "No pollution incident is ever acceptable. We want to apologise for the impact the incidents at Pools Brook had in 2018 and 2019, which were the result of an inadequate external protective coating being applied to one of the sewers and wet wipes building up and causing blockages in the other sewer."
The spokesperson also noted that since the last incident, the company has invested over £2.5 million to relocate the two sewers involved and has implemented key learnings across its operations. Additionally, Yorkshire Water is working on its largest ever environmental investment programme, valued at £8.3 billion, to be completed before 2030.
The total fine imposed on Yorkshire Water amounted to £733,333, plus additional costs and victim surcharges, underscoring the severity of the repeated environmental violations.
