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Published:
April 26, 2006
Company
fined £3,850 for allowing sewage leak in Burnham-On-Sea
An
engineering company has been ordered to pay £3,859 in fines
and costs for allowing sewage to be discharged into a drainage
ditch in Burnham-on-Sea.
 Bridgwater
Magistrates heard on Wednesday April 26th that Avent Engineering,
of Chippenham, was digging a trench in October last year when
a pipe was damaged in a field next to the B3140.
The
court heard staff thought the liquid was groundwater and pumped
it to the ditch rather than the field.
Environment
Agency inquiries later revealed they did not check the water or
carry out tests on the effluent.
Andrew
King of the Environment Agency said: "Pumping excavation
water direct to the banks of the rhyne (drainage ditch) was a
deliberate act by site staff that contravened Avent company policy.
If
the effluent had been pumped into the field this incident would
not have occurred."
"The
discharge of sewage effluent caused ammonia levels in the rhyne
to rise. However, no fish were killed and there was no long-term
damage."
Avent
Engineering of Bath Road Industrial Estate, Chippenham, Wiltshire,
was fined £2,500 and ordered to pay £1,359 costs by
Bridgwater magistrates. The
company pleaded guilty to the charges.
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