Fined over polluting River Rother in Burwash

Interserve Construction Ltd was told to pay £54,000 with £5,955 costs after admitting a single incident of discharging silt-laden water into a tributary of the river on October 1, 2014.

ICL was contracted by South East Water over an 18-month period at the Crowhurst Bridge Water Treatment Works to improve its ability to manage water treatment.

An Environment Agency officer discovered a brown discharge downstream of the works after a member of the public reported the discoloured water.

Further investigations showed the river was visibly but locally impacted on a temporary basis.

In mitigation it was stated this was an isolated incident of 25 minutes duration, during an 18 month contract and the company was of previous good character.

There was no evidence that local wildlife was adversely affected.

Environment manager David Willis said: “We take these incidents very seriously and do everything within our powers to safeguard the environment and people that may be affected”.

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