Prosecutions

Environment Agency officers were contacted by a member of the public in May 2008 after dead fish were found at a stream. Some 2.5km of watercourse was seriously affected by the pollution.

An investigation revealed that liquid containing ammonia was leaking from a pipe coming from a site owned by the pork company. Contractors had bubbled ammonia gas through a container of water while working on a set of refrigeration units and the contents had spilled into the ecosystem.

At Grantham magistrates court the company pleaded guilty to an offence under the Water Resources Act 1991 and was fined £10,000 and ordered to pay costs of £4,393.

The site director at the time explained that he had relied on the specialist expertise of the contractors and that the only environmental issue they had considered was the possibility of oil spills.

The Investigating officer said: “Ammonia can have a devastating effect on wildlife, poisoning fish and other aquatic organisms or seriously affecting their health, breeding and food they live on. This company did not have enough procedures in place to deal with this incident, resulting in the water having a level of ammonia 24 times higher than could be expected in the poorest quality watercourse.”