Water company to pay out £2.35m over pollution

Yorkshire Water is to pay £2.35m to fund environmental improvements following a series of pollution incidents.

The payout follows seven unauthorised sewage incidents across the region between 2019 and 2023.

As a result, the Environment Agency (EA) secured seven enforcement undertakings, requiring the firm to take steps to prevent repetition of the offending and to put right any damage.

Yorkshire Water said the company took its environmental commitments "very seriously" and would invest £1.5bn over the next five years to improve Yorkshire's rivers and coastal waters.

The cash will go to environmental charities to bolster improvements to nature reserves, wetland habitat creation and restoring flood plains.

According to the EA, Yorkshire Water will make the following financial contributions:

• £500,000 to Don Catchment Rivers Trust for the failure of a storm tank at Lundwood Wastewater Treatment Works, Barnsley, and unauthorised sewage discharges into the River Dearne

• £500,000 to Don Catchment Rivers Trust for an unauthorised sewage discharge from a burst rising main at Stainforth Huddle Grounds, Doncaster

• £350,000 to Yorkshire Dales Rivers Trust for an unauthorised sewage discharge from Leyburn Sewage Treatment Works into the River Ure

• £300,000 to Aire Rivers Trust for three unauthorised sewage discharges into the River Aire from Knostrop Wastewater Treatment Works in Leeds

• £300,000 split between Yorkshire Wildlife Trust (£150,000) and Calder and Colne Rivers Trust (£150,000) for an unauthorised sewage discharge at High Royd Towpath Combined Sewer Overflow, Sowerby Bridge, into the River Calder

• £250,000 to Calder and Colne Rivers Trust for an unauthorised sewage discharge from a collapsed combined sewer into Cockleshaw Beck, East Bierley, Kirklees

• £150,000 to Yorkshire Wildlife Trust for an unauthorised sewage discharge at Laithes Lane in Athersley South in Barnsley.

In addition to the funding, Yorkshire Water has carried out remedial actions at each site, including repairing and upgrading infrastructure.

The company will also pay all of the EA's investigation costs.

Jacqui Tootill, Water Industry Regulation Manager in Yorkshire, said: "While we continue to prosecute and sanction the most serious offences, enforcement undertakings allow companies to put right what went wrong and channel money directly into the environment.

"This £2.35m will be invested back into the local area to enhance the environment, delivering real benefits for people and wildlife."

A Yorkshire Water spokesperson said: "Unfortunately, there are instances where things go wrong and we take responsibility to make it right.

"We always cooperate fully with investigations, and sometimes these can lead to us giving enforcement undertakings to the Environment Agency.

"As part of these undertakings, compensation is provided to local charities so improvements can be made to benefit our local environment.

"We have seen compensation from past undertakings deliver real improvements for local initiatives."

Listen to highlights from West Yorkshire on BBC Sounds, catch up with the latest episode of Look North.