Company fined more than $2 million after illegally dumping raw sewage following pump failures: 'Their contingency plans were woefully inadequate'

A British water supply company was fined more than $2.4 million for polluting a local river with raw sewage. 

What happened?

Severn Trent, a water supply company that serves 4.6 million households and businesses in central England and Wales, was handed a roughly $2.4 million fine after discharging what the Guardian called "huge amounts" of raw sewage into the River Trent between November 2019 and February 2020.

The sewage was released into the river after two of the three screw pumps failed at one of the company's wastewater treatment plants.

"Our investigation showed that their contingency plans were woefully inadequate, with a major pump being out of action for 52 days prior to the incident," said Adam Shipp, a senior environment officer at the Environment Agency, per the Guardian.

Why is sewage discharge in rivers concerning?

According to Shipp, Severn Trent is lucky that its leaks did not cause catastrophic pollution in the river thanks to high water flows when the discharge occurred. 

Sewage pollution is a threat to human health, according to American Rivers. 

"Untreated human sewage teems with salmonella, hepatitis, dysentery, cryptosporidium, and many other infectious diseases," the organization says on its website, adding that it sickens and kills large numbers of people each year.

Sewage can also radically affect ecosystems, endangering animal and plant life. A 2023 study from the University of Oxford found that sewage pollution is the primary driver of increased nutrients, algae, and sewage fungus in rivers. Researchers also discovered that sewage discharge in rivers greatly altered plant, animal, and microbe communities, "increasing the abundance of harmful species."

Severn Trent is not the only company guilty of releasing sewage into waterways. For instance, one Welsh company has been spewing untreated sewage into a protected marine habitat for over a decade. Plus, a number of English water companies were found culpable for increased algal growth in the country's largest natural lake because of illegal raw sewage dumps.

What's being done about Severn Trent's sewage pollution?

Besides the fines, the Environment Agency is requiring Severn Trent to implement on-site measures that it says will ensure another such incident does not occur. According to the Guardian, the treatment center has pleaded guilty to two other charges of illegally discharging sewage. 

Educating yourself about critical climate issues and voting in local elections when applicable are ways to make your voice heard on matters like these. 

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