Agricultural product manufacturer ordered to remediate river pollution
Omex Agriculture Ltd (Omex) will be required to create new, better habitats within the River Witham following a pollution incident that killed over 100,000 fish.
In March 2018, the company polluted the River Witham with ammonia. This resulted in severe damage to the river and its ecosystems. The pollution affected over 40 kilometres of river from Bardney to the Wash. It is thought to be the worst river pollution incident ever recorded in the county.
Remediation Notice
In response to the incident, the Environment Agency issued the company with a remediation notice under the Environmental Damage (Prevention and Remediation) Regulations 2015. This is the second time these powers have been used under this legislation.
The remediation notice outlines measures Omex must take in order to restore the river to its former health.
By the end of 2020, Omex must investigate and design a number of habitat improvements to help boost the river’s ecology, such as fish refuges and improved woody and marginal areas to help them shelter, spawn and feed.
Fish refuges are to be installed across half a dozen locations on the river by the end of January, with other habitat improvement works completed by the end of June 2021.
Omex must also look at whether it’s possible to create further backwaters along the river where fish can breed and shelter with the intention of completing this work by spring of 2022.
Once the works are complete, the company must assess whether fish populations have recovered, or whether more fish restocking is required to bring the river back to its former state of health.
Omex will be responsible for monitoring and maintaining the improvements for at least the next decade.
The initial proposals were developed by the company before being shared with the Environment Agency for scrutiny and expert advice. After a thorough review, final plans have been agreed and the company has 28 days to appeal the notice.
Enforcement undertaking agreed with cookware and kitchen appliance supplier
An importer and supplier of cookware and small kitchen appliances has entered into an enforcement undertaking after it failed to meet its obligations under the Producer Responsibility Obligations (Packaging Waste) Regulations 2007.
Any company producing more than 50 tonnes of packaging a year with a turnover of above £2 million must register with the Environment Agency or a packaging compliance scheme and meet their responsibilities for recycling waste packaging.
Groupe SEB failed to recover and recycle the weight of packaging supplied in the UK in 2017 and a total of 1,183 tonnes of packaging waste may not have been diverted from landfill.
The original proactive enforcement undertaking offer was made in 2018 for Groupe SEB’s failure to register as a producer and recover or recycle packaging waste in 2017. The company had previously been compliant but mistakenly believed it was registered when it moved from one compliance scheme to another.
Enforcement Undertaking
For its enforcement undertaking, the company offered £12,000, more than double the calculated amount of avoided costs (£5,950.17).
The money was split equally between two charities: Thames Rivers Trust and The Marine Conservation Society. This money was supplied to help pay for projects including litter picking and removal at London Rivers Week and The Great British Beach Clean. Both projects aim to deal with the impact of packaging waste on the environment and local communities.
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