NI Water has been fined £500 plus costs for a pollution offence at Ballynahinch Wastewater Treatment Works (WwTW) on 31 March 2011.
A spokesperson for NI Water said: “The site where the pollution incident occurred is currently undergoing a £5 million capital investment to upgrade capacity, efficiency and local telemetry capabilities.
“While there had been no incidents previously at the site, the pollution incident was linked to a mechanical failure of two pumps. The pumps were removed for repair and a temporary pump was installed. Unfortunately, this failed and caused a discharge of storm water to the local water course.
“Once alerted, NI Water acted quickly to stop the discharge. Staff were alerted at 5:45pm and the pollution was stopped at 8:00pm. The new replacement pumps were fitted on 1 April 2011 and operational that evening.
“The site is presently undergoing a major £5 million investment scheme which will minimise the potential for future incidents to occur at this site.”
Throughout the process, NI Water cooperated fully with the Northern Ireland Environment Agency.
The spokesperson explained, NI Water views the protection of the environment as a major priority and invests significant resources and measures to safeguard it. NI Water’s environmental record is improving each year, and due to major capital investment, we are achieving the best ever wastewater compliance.
