A West Midlands waste management company has offered £100,00 to a local wildlife project following a fire at its Cannock site.
The Environment Agency has accepted the Enforcement Undertaking from Axil Integrated Services Ltd following the fire, which occurred in September 2022.
The money has been donated to the Wildlife Trust for Birmingham and the Black Country towards their Purple Horizons Nature Recovery Project.
Environment Agency officers said Axil Integrated Services Ltd had co-operated fully following the incident, submitting a full incident report and statements admitting its failures within two days and carrying out repair work.
Purple Horizons, which extends across 12,000ha on the fringes of the West Midlands conurbation, is creating a nature-rich corridor between Cannock Chase Special Area of Conservation (SAC) and Sutton Park National Nature Reserve (NNR).
It is one of 12 nature recovery projects across England.
Enforcement Undertaking
An Enforcement Undertaking is available to the Environment Agency as an alternative sanction to prosecution or monetary penalty for dealing with certain environmental offences.
Lead investigator for the Environment Agency, Graham Aberley, said: “Enforcement Undertakings allow polluters to positively address and restore the harm caused to the environment and prevent repeat incidents.
“The Environment Agency is increasingly using this method of enforcement for suitable cases to restore the environment, improve practices of the offending company and avoid longer criminal court cases. However, we will prosecute in appropriate cases.
“As a result of the Enforcement Undertaking the Environment Agency has decided not to pursue any possible prosecution or other sanction for an environmental offence which may have been committed.”
Porject manager for the Purple Horizons Nature Recovery Project at Natural England, Chloe Hardman, said: “We are glad that this funding is being made available to benefit nature in the area between Cannock Chase and Sutton Park.
“It will make a real difference to our partners at wildlife charities and local councils, who are working to create a healthier environment for nature and people.
“We are currently developing the set of projects that will benefit from the funding and these will be announced in due course.”
