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Charges relate to illegal discharges and breach of environmental permit. Case adjourned for sentencing at a later date.

South West Water Ltd has been before Plymouth Magistrates’ Court where the company pleaded guilty to five offences related to illegal water discharge activities and a breach of an environmental permit.

The company has admitted two charges relating to the Hooe Lake Sewage Pumping Station at Plymstock between August and September 2020 of causing a sewage discharge and breaching an environmental permit, one of causing a discharge into Polperro harbour in August 2019 and two relating to discharges at Bodmin Road, Whitleigh, Plymouth in August and September 2020.

The case was adjourned for sentencing at a later date.

Editors’ Note’s

The charges:

Hooe Lake

1 That you, between 27 August 2020 and 2 September 2020 at Hooe Lake Sewage Pumping Station, Plymstock, Plymouth, Devon, caused a water discharge activity, namely the discharge of poisonous, noxious or polluting matter, namely untreated sewage, otherwise in accordance with a permit.

Contrary to Regulations 12(1)(b) and 38(1)(a) Environmental Permitting (England and Wales) Regulations 2016.

2 That you. between 27 August 2020 and 2 September 2020 at Hooe Lake Sewage Pumping Station, Plymstock, Plymouth, Devon, breached condition 2.3.2a of Environmental Permit 032894/V001 in that a discharge of raw sewage occurred when the flow passed forward was not equal to or greater than the overflow setting indicated due to rainfall and/or snowmelt.

Contrary to Regulations 12(1)(a) and 38(2) of the Environmental Permitting (England and Wales) Regulations 2016.

Polperro

3 That you, between 24 August 2019 and 27 August 2019 at Polperro otherwise in accordance with an environmental permit, caused a water discharge activity, namely a discharge into Polperro Harbour.

Contrary to Regulations 12(1)(b) & 38(1)(a) of the Environmental Permitting (England and Wales) Regulations 2016

Bodmin Road

4 That you, between 27 August 2020 and 29 August 2020 at Budshead Creek, Whitleigh, Plymouth did cause a water discharge activity namely the discharge into inland freshwaters of poisonous, noxious or polluting matter except under or to the extent authorised by and environmental permit.

Contrary to Regulations 12(1)(b) and 38(1)(a) Environmental Permitting (England and Wales) Regulations 2016 

5 That you, on 6 September 2020 at Budshead Creek, Whitleigh, Plymouth did cause a water discharge activity namely the discharge into inland freshwaters of poisonous,  noxious or polluting matter except under or to the extent authorised by and environmental permit.

Contrary to Regulations 12(1)(b) and 38(1)(a) Environmental Permitting (England and Wales) Regulations 2016