Annex 2
EXAMPLE PRESS RELEASES
OFFENCES AFFECTING
CONSERVATION OF
AQUATIC WILDLIFE
Kent farmer prosecuted for illegal landfill at
water vole site
Date published: 24 March 2004
A Kent farmer has been fined £750 and ordered
to pay costs of £1,650 for running an illegal landfill site
on the Dartford Marshes at a nature conservation site which is
home to increasingly rare water voles.
At Dartford Magistrates Court Brian Thomsett,
of Joyce Green Lane, Dartford pleaded guilty to the offence, which
took place on his farm.
The court heard that on 7 April 2003 an Environment
Agency Conservation Officer was alerted to an incident involving
waste material being deposited on land at Joyce Green Farm. On
11 April 2003 Agency Environment Officers observed a queue of
lorries waiting to deposit waste on the land and witnessed a number
of lorries actually tipping.
Under Section 33 of the Environmental Protection
Act landowners cannot allow waste to be tipped on their land without
a permit from the Environment Agency. This allows the Agency to
stipulate conditions that minimise the risk of pollution to the
environment or harm to human health.
The investigating officers found the land to
be owned by Mr Thomsett. He was warned an offence was being committed
but the tipping continued for three more days.
The farmland is situated within the Dartford
Marshes and has a local conservation designation—"Site
of Nature Conservation Interest"—in recognition of
the habitat provided to mammals, birds, insects and invertebrates.
Drainage ditches crossing the land are known to house protected
species such as the water vole.
The waste deposited at the site included inert
wastes such as soils and rock, construction and demolition wastes
such as rubble, tarmac and concrete, utility wastes such as plastic
pipes and cables, and waste transfer station wastes such as screenings
and other fines consisting of plastics and polystyrene.
In his defence Mr Thomsett apologised for his
actions. He said as soon as he was aware that an offence was being
committed he had tried to stop the tipping but he had been unable
to do so.
After the case Paul Bennett for the Environment
Agency said, "We hope this case sends a clear message to
landowners that they have a duty to the environmental protection
of their land. We would advise landowners to contact the Agency
for advice before allowing anything to be deposited on their land
and to tell the Agency if they are approached by anyone offering
free `topsoil'."
Environment Agency investigates fish kill in Weymouth
Date published: 30 March 2004
Officers from the Environment Agency were this
morning (30 March) assessing the impact of a serious pollution
that occurred over the weekend of 27-28 March.
The Agency's Blandford Office first received
reports of dead fish at Chafeys Lake, Weymouth on Monday 29 March.
Officers attended the scene immediately and spent the morning
investigating the cause of the fish deaths. They traced the source
of a pollutant to premises on the Granby Industrial Estate.
Early indications are that a polluting discharge
entered the surface water drains on the Granby Industrial Estate
sometime over the weekend. This liquid found its way into the
stream in Chafeys Lake that feeds into Radipole Lake. The discharge
caused the oxygen level in the lake to plummet, suffocating the
fish. Over 300—mainly dace and good quality roach—have
so far been recovered by Agency fishery staff.
Kevin Parsons is leading the investigation for
the Environment Agency and comments: "We have spent a lot
of time working with companies on the Granby Estate, highlighting
any risk their sites pose to the watercourse and advising them
on pollution prevention measures. It is very disappointing that
once again, this stream has been polluted. We must remind everyone
on the estate to make sure that all their chemicals are properly
contained and polluting discharges can't get into surface water
drains."
Kevin added: "As a result of this incident,
we will once again be visiting all premises on the estate to remind
everyone of the risks."
Pollution kills hundreds of crayfish in Cumbrian
river
Date published: 2 April 2004
Environment Agency officers are investigating
a major pollution incident that has killed hundreds of native
crayfish in a popular Cumbrian beauty spot.
An alert was raised after Environment Agency
Officer Bevis Winter discovered large numbers of the dead "White-Clawed"
crayfish during routine chemical sampling on the River Lyvennet
at Lyvennet Bridge, near Morland in North Cumbria.
Subsequent investigations revealed that all
the crayfish had been killed by pollution into the water, which
affected five kilometres of the River Lyvennet. The river also
acts as a tributary to the nearby River Eden.
In addition to killing hundreds of native crayfish,
the incident has also killed a number of other crustaceans in
the river including freshwater shrimps.
Agency officers at the scene are currently still
investigating the cause of the pollution, which is believed to
have been from a local source.
David Scott, the Environment Agency's Ecological
Appraisal Officer for the North West commented today (Friday):
"The nature of the substance involved in the pollution is
still a mystery but we do expect to have a clearer view on the
source of the incident fairly soon."
"White clawed crayfish are the most valuable
of the crayfish species and we expect this loss to have a significant
impact on other creatures locally such as otters, who rely on
crayfish as a key food source."
Environment Agency Officer Paul Thompson, who
is heading the team investigating the incident, says that although
the pollution in the river has now cleared, it is thought it may
have been present in the water for several days.
He commented: "We are extremely keen to
find out how this pollution could have occurred and we hope to
confirm its source as soon as possible."
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