A dairy farm in Lancashire has been ordered to pay over £10,000 by the Lancaster Magistrates’ Court for slurry pollution, following a successful prosecution taken by the Environment Agency.
During a hearing held in November 2024, E & A Forshaw Partnership, which operates the dairy farm at Bolton Fold Farm in Alston, Preston, pleaded guilty to two counts of illegal slurry discharge into a watercourse and one charge of breaching slurry storage regulations.
The farm reappeared in Court on January 7 where it was convicted for twice polluting Tun Brook, a tributary of the River Ribble in Lancashire and for situating the slurry storage unit too close to the waterfront.
It was fined £3,000 and ordered to pay costs of £7,301.70, in addition to a £300 victim surcharge.
The court heard that in November 2019, the farm reported that pipes used to spread slurry had ruptured, leaking pollution into Tun Brook as a result.
Following these reports, officers from the Environment Agency attended the farm and found the brook discoloured, however, a follow up visit to the site two days later revealed that a clean-up operation was underway and the waterway was running clear.
Slurry pollution
Two months later, in January 2020, the Environment Agency received a second report of pollution at Alston Lane, near Longridge. An investigation established that the watercourse was discoloured, with an odour consistent with agriculture.
The investigating officers traced the source to Bolton Fold Farm and found a hole in the side of the slurry pit, which was releasing slurry into Tun brook. The following day, officers revisited and were shown remedial work that had taken place to close the hole.
According to the Environment Agency, while the slurry lagoon had originally been built before regulations came into force, the farm had subsequently extended the lagoon without planning permission, illegally bringing it within 10mof the waterfront.
The court heard that a second storage facility has since been completed, following advice from the Environment Agency, which conforms with legislative requirements.
Area environment manager for the Environment Agency, Nicki Rushton, said:
“Regulations on how to construct slurry stores have been in place for more than 30 years. All farmers need to be aware of their legal responsibilities to prevent pollution events like this from happening.
“We will take action against anyone who fails to act in accordance with environmental laws. I’d advise those who need advice on their slurry structures to contact us, which will ensure their storage facilities are compliant and the environment is properly protected.”
