Two major UK construction companies have been ordered to pay £21,800 for poor planning which led to water pollution at a construction site they were working on.

At Derby Magistrates’ Court last week Carillion JM Limited was fined £7,000 and Wilson Bowden Developments Limited was fined £10,000. Carillion was also ordered to pay £3,398 costs and Wilson Bowden £5,098.

Both companies pleaded guilty previously to one charge each relating to the pollution of waters surround the development site of Castlewood Grange, near South Normanton. The charges were brought by the Environment Agency under the Water Resources Act 1991.

For the Environment Agency, Counsel Richard Bradley told the court that the two companies had various responsibilities for the site; Wilson Bowden owned the site and Carillion were the principle contractors with overall reasonability.

The Castlewood Grange development site is situated to the south of the A38 and east of the M1 at junction 28, near South Normanton, Derbyshire. The land was then being developed for office and industrial units and the total area is approximately 111 hectares. A tributary of the Maghole Brook rises within the site and then enters Halfmoon Pond in the grounds of Brookhill Hall.

Work started on the site on 18 June 2007. On 8 August 2007 the Environment Agency received a complaint from the owner of Brookhill Hall stating that the pond was silting up as a result of the construction works at the Castlewood Grange site.

On 10 August 2007 the pond was inspected. The water was clear but had a coasting of soft yellow sediment. The Castlewood Grange site was also inspected and it was seen that topsoil had been stripped from large areas of the site. There was no settlement lagoon to treat run-off from the site.

On 15 August the site was revisited and found to be generally very muddy and there was evidence of silt run-off from the haul road into the Brook. The Brook had been dammed with clay and yellow/ grey coloured water was accumulating behind the dam. Tests were carried out to show the quality of water downstream of the site. High amounts of suspended solids were found which can have an effect of animals, fish and fauna.

The balancing pond, which should have been used from the beginning of the works, was put into use around 17 October 2007 to treat run-off from the site. A discharge consent has now been applied for and granted to authorise the discharge of treated site drainage.

Carillion was the principle contractor for the site and stated in an interview that it had overall responsibility. Wilson Bowden owned the site and should have ensured the terms of Carillion’s contract were being complied with – which included treating the site run-off.

Speaking after the case Neil Ratcliffe, an Environment Agency Officer involved in the investigation, said:

“This case clearly shows the need for thorough planning and adequate pollution prevention measures. This incident could have been easily avoided and the pollution could potentially have harmed plants, fish and invertebrates. Suspended solids in water can stunt aquatic plant growth and affect oxygen levels, as well as destroying the habitats of insects and invertebrates, which are a source of food for fish and birds.“

In mitigation, Wilson Bowden were very apologetic for the incident, accepted that they had taken sufficient precautions and had no previous convictions. Carillion told the court that they had taken the incident extremely seriously, apologised for the incident and had no previous convictions.