Co Fermanagh farmer fined for water pollution offence

Mr Loane pleaded guilty and was fined £1,000 plus £15 Offenders Levy.

The Court was told that on 13 October 2021 a Water Quality Inspector (WQI) acting on behalf of Northern Ireland Environment Agency (NIEA) responded to a report of silage effluent entering a stream along the Crevenish Road, close to Kesh. The WQI examined the waterway and discovered heavy fungal growth covering the bed of the waterway. The Inspector discovered a small, dark coloured, contaminated tributary entering the waterway upstream of a road bridge. The Inspector traced the pollution upstream to the rear of Mr Loane’s farm premises. Dark coloured effluent was observed flowing along an open field drain from the farm premises before entering the waterway. This was confirmed as the source of the pollution.

In accordance with procedures a tripartite statutory sample of the active discharge was collected and analysed and found to contain poisonous, noxious, or polluting matter which was potentially harmful to fish life in the receiving waterway. Effluents of this nature enrich fungus coverage on the bed of the watercourse which may lead to the destruction of fish spawning sites, as well as starving both fish and river invertebrates, on which fish feed, of oxygen. Effluents with high ammonia content, as was the case with this one, are also directly toxic to fish life in receiving watercourses.

Anyone wishing to report a pollution incident can call the 24 hour Water Pollution Hotline on: 0800 80 70 60.