ENVIRONMENT AGENCY ISSUE HUGE POLUTION RELATED FINES


T


his year has seen a number of signifi cant fi nes imposed on companies following convictions


for pollution-related off ences. We will take a look at three of those cases, along with some important changes to the guidelines on the credit to be awarded to Defendants who plead guilty at an early stage of proceedings.


THAMES WATER


In March 2017, T ames Water was fi ned an unprecedented £19,750,000.


T e fi ne imposed followed instances of what the Environment Agency termed ‘widespread, repeated, sustained, and avoidable pollution’ between 2012 and 2014 caused by leakages at six separate sites across Southern England which devastated local wildlife. T e pollution equated to 1.4 billion litres of untreated sewage and aff ected a 14km stretch of the River T ames.


A successful prosecution was brought by the Environment Agency, which described it as the largest freshwater pollution case in its 20-year history.


It was an exceptional and undeniably serious case, but the scale of the fi ne handed to T ames Water is also symptomatic of a much harsher approach following the introduction of the Sentencing Council’s ‘Environmental Off ences: Defi nitive Guidelines’. Since the introduction of those guidelines there has been a notable increase in the penalties for environmental off ences such as those with which T ames Water was charged.


Previously, fi nes which exceeded £1 million in environmental cases were exceptional but are now much more common place.


UNITED UTILITIES


United Utilities was hit with two signifi cant fi nes in similar matters.


In September 2017, the UK’s largest water company was fi ned more than £660,000 aſt er the River Medlock was polluted with 21,700 cubic metres of raw sewage, subsequently found to be caused by a fault in a septic tank located in Oldham. T e pollution aff ected a 4km


6


by Austin Welch & Tom Longstaff


stretch of the river and the sentencing judge noted that it had a ‘signifi cant impact’ on local wildlife.


T at was followed by a further fi ne of £300,000, handed down in October aſt er drinking water in North-West England was contaminated with the parasite ‘cryptosporidium’, which is known to cause diarrhoea and stomach cramps. T e pollution was caused aſt er animal waste seeped into an underground tank and leſt residents being advised for almost a month to boil tap water before drinking it.


T e combined total of the fi nes imposed on United Utilities within the space of a few weeks serves as a reminder to all businesses. T e criminal courts have shown an increased willingness to impose fi nes that send out a clear message that environmental crime is a matter that is taken very seriously and will be punished accordingly.


CHANGES TO THE GUIDELINES ON REDUCTION IN SENTENCE FOR AN EARLY GUILTY PLEA


T e fi nes imposed on United Utilities attracted a reduction of one-third under the new credit guidelines on early guilty pleas, the company having pleaded guilty at the fi rst hearing in the Magistrates Court.


Under the new guidelines the one-third credit is only available if a guilty plea is entered at the fi rst opportunity in the Magistrates’ Court. T ereaſt er the maximum credit available will be reduced to one- quarter, diminishing to one-tenth if a plea of guilty is entered on the fi rst day of a trial.


Using the T ames Water case as an example, a diff erence between a one-third reduction and one- quarter reduction in that particular sentence would have been in the region of £2 million. T e message could not be clearer - if faced with criminal prosecution, obtain legal advice as soon as possible!


Austin Welch is a specialist regulatory barrister who practices from Lincoln House Chambers in Manchester. He is well known for his expertise in Health & Safety & Environmental Law.


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