Northumbrian Water pays out £165,000 to rivers trust following Tyne pollution incident

The Environment Agency has accepted a £165,000 Enforcement Undertaking from Northumbrian Water in atonement for a 2018 pollution incident near Newcastle.

Northumbrian Water made the voluntary payment to Tyne Rivers Trust after causing an unauthorised discharge from its Horsley Water Treatment Works, which polluted Kitty’s Burn which flows into the Tyne. The Environment Agency said sampling indicated minimal ecological impact on the river.

The incident followed Northumbrian Water’s hire of a sludge dewatering machine to address increase demand at the Horsley plant. But the use of old drainage plans led staff to connect the machine in error it to a surface water drain rather than a foul sewer. So some 8Ml of liquid produced from sludge dewatering was discharged over about eight weeks into a drain which led to Kitty Burn.

Northumbrian Water has detailed changes in operating procedures at Horsley that included its use of colour-coded drain covers and on-site signage, drains checked against a current site drainage plan, and investment in new machinery.