Northumbrian Water pays £165,000 over pollution incident

The unauthorised discharge from its Horsley Water Treatment Works took place at Kitty’s Burn near Newcastle in 2018

Northumbrian Water has agreed to pay £165,000 after waste was discharged from its treatment works into the River Tyne.

The unauthorised discharge from its Horsley Water Treatment Works took place at Kitty’s Burn near Newcastle in 2018, with the Environment Agency revealing the discharge had been taking place sporadically for around eight weeks.

A total of almost eight million litres of liquid, called centrate, was discharged into a drain which led to Kitty Burn and flowed around 1.3 kilometres into the River Tyne.

The water company submitted an Enforcement Undertaking – a voluntary offer made by companies and individuals to make amends for their offences – to the Environment Agency.

It details how Northumbrian Water has introduced standard operating procedures to ensure all sites have colour-coded drain covers and onsite signage, that all drains are to be identified and checked against a current site drainage plan and has invested in new machinery.

The payment has been made to Tyne Rivers Trust to help it protect and enhance nature in the local area.

Rachael Caldwell, Area Environment Manager said: “All businesses, including water companies, have a responsibility to ensure their activities do not present a risk of harm to people and the environment.

“When companies fail to meet their environmental obligations, it’s a serious matter and we will take appropriate action, which may include civil sanctions.

“Enforcement Undertakings allow companies who fail to comply with legal requirements, or pollute the environment, to positively address and restore any harm caused and prevent repeat incidents.

“This payment to Tyne Rivers Trust will help protect and enhance nature in the local area.”

Richard Warneford, Wastewater Director at Northumbrian Water added: “We’re extremely sorry that this happened and as soon as the issue was discovered, our teams acted quickly to minimise the amount of discharge that was released.

“We work incredibly hard to avoid all pollution incidents. However, in the very rare event something like this should occur, we support the use of Enforcement Undertakings which allow the local community to benefit from the funding offered.”

Make sure you check out the latest Net Hero Podcast episode:

Latest Podcast