Slurry was leaking into waterways from a ditch
File picture of an Environment Agency worker treating a river(Image: PA)
A Devon farmer has been told to pay more than £4,700 after more than 300 fish died from slurry pollution.
On March 9 Michael Wade of Higher Melbury Farm, Yeo Vale in Bideford pleaded guilty at Barnstaple Magistrates’ Court to two counts of illegal water discharge.
The court heard the Environment Agency (EA) investigated two slurry pollution incidents at Higher Melbury Farm in January 2023 and August 2024.
Slurry discharged through a farm ditch into a tributary of Dipple Brook before travelling 1.6km in 2023.
Sewage fungus found in the water showed the slurry had been polluting the water for “some time”.
In 2024 slurry was seen discharged from a ditch at the farm into a tributary of Holebrook.
The EA said over 300 fish, including salmonids and lamprey, died as a result.
The EA used “considerable resources and pumping equipment” to remove the slurry contaminated water to avoid a more serious incident.
Wade was fined £340, ordered to pay a victim surcharge of £136 and costs of £4,302. The farm previously paid £11,130 to the EA to cover costs of the pollution.
Nicola Rumsey, Environment Officer said: “Farmers have a responsibility to ensure that slurry is properly stored and spread, to avoid the risk of harm to the environment.
“If farmers have concerns about not having sufficient slurry storage capacity, we recommend they contact us, so that we can give advice ahead of time and avoid an incident.
“When incidents do happen, these can kill fish and impact water quality, as well as requiring significant resources to clean up.”