Northern Ireland Water (NIW) has been fined again, this time £2,000, for breaching their discharge consent and releasing untreated sewage into a waterway in County Antrim.
A blockage was caused by inappropriate items being put into the sewerage system, resulting in a discharge from a pumping station stretching 500 metres into the Six Mile Water. The problem at Clotworthy Bridge, was discovered last May and NIW staff said material which should not have been placed into the sewers caused one of the pumps at Masserene Sewage Pumping Station to trip.
A Northern Ireland Environment Agency spokesman said, "A sample taken at the time of the incident confirmed that the discharge contained poisonous, noxious or polluting matter which was potentially harmful to fishlife in the receiving waterway."
NIW suggested everyone in Northern Ireland could help reduce pollution incidents and that, "Only toilet roll and human waste should be flushed down the toilet, for everything else - bag it and bin it, don't flush it." NIW claimed that a thorough investigation had highlighted areas in which improvements could be made in order to quickly respond to future incidents and minimise the environmental impact of discharges.
In order to improve their reputation, NIW have invested in water and wastewater services to bring them up to an acceptable standard. This includes a new replacement sewage pumping station due to become operational soon. They commented, "With completion of investment programmes such as this, we are confident that pollution incidents will become less common."
