Severn Trent Water fined more than £400,000 for sewage leaks

WATER company Severn Trent Water Limited has been fined £426,000 after pollution incidents occurred on three occasions.

The Coventry-headquartered company, which pleaded guilty to the charges at Nottingham Magistrates Court, was also ordered to pay Environment Agency costs of £38,642.60 as well as a victim surcharge of £120.

The fine comes after pollution incidents where sewage leaked into the Shire Brook on the border of Derbyshire and Nottinghamshire on three separate occasions between May 2013 and April 2014.

The Severn Trent sewer that transported raw sewage had backed up and leaked into the surface water drain that led to the Shire Brook on the first two occasions. The third saw thick sewage sludge and solids on the hillside, ‘sewage pools’ at ground level and grey water and sewage fungus in the brook due to a blocked combined sewer.

Nottingham Crown Court heard the incidents were a failure by Severn Trent as a whole to take reasonable care and enforce proper systems. They added that the risks were entirely foreseeable and Severn Trent did not proactively investigate the sewers in response.

An Environment Agency spokesperson said: “Severn Trent Water has a responsibility to inspect and maintain its sewers, and the discharge of raw sewage into the same brook three times within 12 months is more than unfortunate.

“This is one of the largest fines ever to be imposed on Severn Trent and I hope it sends a strong message that it is far more cost effective to avoid these incidents, as we will continue to take action against companies and individuals where they ignore their responsibilities.”

In the last financial year Severn Trent’s turnover increased from £1.5bn to £1.8bn, with a pre-tax profits of £512.6m.