Lincolnshire company Omex Agriculture fined over deadly River Witham pollution

A company that was responsible for pollution which killed more than 135,000 fish has been ordered to pay more than £500,000.

More than 46km of the River Witham in Lincolnshire was polluted when three million litres of liquid fertiliser leaked from a faulty pipe at Omex Agriculture.

The incident, which affected a stretch of water from Bardney to The Wash at Boston, was one of the largest environmental incidents ever recorded in Lincolnshire.

The Environment Agency said it devastated nearby rivers and surrounding woodland, destroying all invertebrates in the river’s tributaries for more than 23km downstream.

Immediately after the pollution, the river was restocked with more than 1.5 million fish larvae and 70,000 roach and bream. But officials said it could take years for the fisheries to recover.

Omex Agriculture pleaded guilty at Lincolnshire Magistrates Court to causing the pollution and has been ordered to pay a £160,000 fine and costs of £350,000.

The court heard how the company failed to put in place an adequate maintenance and inspection regime to avoid the catastrophic pollution.

Liquid fertiliser was found "gushing" from the elbow joint of an overground pipe which left the surrounding ground and woodland sodden with liquid fertiliser. The pump was immediately switched off but most of the pollution had already escaped to the river.

District Judge Peter Veits said the incident was "avoidable had proper checks been made".

He added that checks were not properly carried out and the failures were "foreseeable".

Leigh Edlin, Environment Agency area director, said: "The pollution of the River Witham by Omex was a devastating event and one of the largest environmental incidents we have seen in Lincolnshire.

"The Environment Agency has worked tirelessly to undo the damage, introducing thousands of fish, and requiring the polluter to repair the damage that was done."

Omex has been ordered to assess whether fish populations have recovered, or whether more restocking is required to bring the river back to its former health.

The company will be responsible for monitoring and maintaining the improvements for at least the next decade.

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