SES Water urges "meticulous" practices at oil exploration site

SES Water has warned oil and gas firm Europa Oil and Gas that it expects to see “meticulous operational practices in place that are adhered to at all times” at Europa’s Weald Basin oil exploration site. The exploration site at Holmwood was recently granted a mining waste permit by the Environment Agency (EA).

SES Water emphasised that it had, during the permit consultation, raised concerns about risks to groundwater due to the proximity of the planned site to its abstraction points for the water supply to Dorking, Surrey and its surrounding areas. It said that while the agency deemed the likelihood of contamination to be very low, SES Water expected Europa to strengthen its documented intended management of the site.

SES Water highlighted that the oil miner was required to “monitor the groundwater before, during and after their operations and are accountable to the EA under the requirements of the environmental permit.” The water firm also called on the EA to “have rigorous monitoring procedures in place and alert us promptly to any issues that could impact groundwater sources.”