Northumbria Water fined for Castle Eden sewage pollution

A water company has been fined more than half a million pounds for polluting a stream with sewage.

Northumbrian Water pleaded guilty to causing or knowingly permitting a water discharge at Heads Hope Burn in Castle Eden, County Durham, in May 2017.

The company has been fined £540,000 and ordered to pay costs of £142,500 plus a victim surcharge of £170.

Wastewater director Richard Warneford said "many changes and improvements" had been made to reduce pollution risk.

"However, we will continue to strive to do even better and are currently investing £5m on upgrades to the sewer network in the area around Heads Hope Dene, to protect the environment and future-proof our assets," Mr Warneford said.

The Environment Agency (EA), which brought the prosecution, said a blockage in a combined sewer caused raw sewage to "pour out of a manhole cover" and into the stream that runs through Heads Hope Dene.

Surveys found the ecology and habitat of the watercourse had been damaged for over a mile (2km), with river samples showing water quality had been affected for 2.5 miles (4km).

EA regional environment manager Rachael Caldwell said water companies had a legal duty to avoid pollution and "must act quickly to reduce any damage that happens as a result of their activities".

Northumbrian Water reported the incident to the EA and began work to clear the blockage and make improvements on the same day, she said.

It plans to re-route the sewer out of the dene.

The EA has brought 46 prosecutions against water companies since 2015, it said.

Follow BBC North East & Cumbria on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram. Send your story ideas to [email protected].