East Midlands Airport to stand trial on River Trent pollution charges

East Midlands Airport will stand trial over allegations it polluted the River Trent with chemicals it uses to de-ice planes and its runway.

The airport, near Castle Donington in Leicestershire, is being prosecuted by the Environment Agency following a campaign by an angling group.

East Midlands International Airport Ltd (EMA) denied six charges in a hearing at Derby Crown Court on Thursday.

A trial is set to take place on 19 May 2025.

The airport has a permit to release waste water, but is accused of breaching its conditions by causing sewage fungus outbreaks.

The allegations, relating to the River Trent and Diseworth Brook, include causing a water discharge activity and alleged failures to comply with an environmental permit between 2021 and 2022.

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