On 26 January 2009, S.I.M.L. Holdings Limited of Morton, Oswestry, pleaded guilty at Oswestry Magistrates’ Court to one charge relating to the pollution of Cardeston Brook. This incident took place in the village of Ford near Shrewsbury and killed approximately 2000 fish.
The charge was brought by the Environment Agency under the Water Resources Act 1991. S.I.M.L. Holdings were fined £5,500 and ordered to pay costs of £5,350.39.
The Cardeston Brook passes through Cardeston and Ford and feeds into the River Severn. The Brook has a high quality of water and there were large numbers of salmon present before the incident.
For the Environment Agency, Jill Crawford told the court that on 11 September 2007 the Environment Agency received a report from the public of dead fish in the Cardeston Brook, Ford. Large numbers of dead fish were seen in the area and it was observed that there was a polluting matter which appeared a reddish brown colour. This discharge was traced back the S.I.M.L. Holdings chicken farm at Crossgates, Ford.
The following day polluting matter was still seen entering the brook. Environment Agency officers discovered that the source was from a drain on the S.I.M.L. Holdings site. The discharge was caused by an accidental loss of effluent to surface water drains.
On 13 September 2007 approximately 2000 dead fish, including juvenile salmon, were collected from the Cardeston Brook. An Ecological Survey found that there was serious effect on the invertebrate life of the brook for approximately 300m.
Speaking after the case Paul Williams, an Environment Agency Officer involved in the investigation said: “The activities of S.I.M.L. Holdings caused a high quality watercourse in Ford to become polluted. We will not hesitate to prosecute those who pollute the environment and risk harming the fish and aquatic life that live in our rivers.”
In mitigation, the court heard that S.I.M.L. Holdings put early guilty plea, gave full cooperation and took prompt remedial action.
