Dorset farms ordered to pay £33,500 after slurry pollution incidents

Three Dorset farm businesses have been forced to pay £33,500 after slurry pollution incidents contaminated local waterways and triggered an Environment Agency investigation.

The businesses — Crockway Farms Ltd, Drummers Farming Limited and Crutchley Farms Partnership — were found to have breached environmental regulations designed to protect rivers and streams across Dorset.

Two of the cases involved slurry entering watercourses, while another centred on a pig farm installing new slurry stores without the required environmental permit.

The payments were made through enforcement undertakings, allowing the businesses to avoid prosecution while funding environmental projects.

At Drummers Farming Limited, near Sherborne, two separate slurry pollution incidents were recorded during spring 2024.

In April, slurry escaped from a lagoon and entered the Leigh Tributary of the Beer Hackett Stream.

Although alarms were triggered, the spill happened during the night and immediate action was not taken.

During a second incident, laboratory testing found ammonia levels in the water high enough to potentially kill aquatic life.

More than 1.2 miles of downstream watercourse showed signs of pollution following the incidents.

The farm later invested in upgraded slurry storage, removed an overflow pipe and tightened monitoring procedures to reduce future risks.

Drummers Farming Limited paid £10,000 to the Dorset Wildlife Trust to support the Winfrith and Tadnoll Wetland Restoration Project.

Meanwhile, Environment Agency officers traced pollution in Mangerton Brook near Bridport to Marsh Farm, operated by Crutchley Farms Partnership, in October 2023.

Investigators found the stream coated in sewage fungus and carrying a strong odour after slurry overflowed from a failed pump system connected to a concrete storage tank.

Organic waste pollution was visible more than 300 metres downstream, while significant ecological deterioration stretched across an 800-metre section of the brook.

The business later introduced daily inspections and a text alert warning system aimed at preventing further incidents.

Crutchley Farms Partnership paid £7,500 to the Dorset Wildlife Trust for a trees and wetland restoration project.

In a separate case, Crockway Farms Ltd, an intensive pig unit, failed to secure an environmental permit before installing two new slurry stores.

Environmental permits are mandatory for intensive pig farms because of the risks linked to ammonia emissions and slurry pollution.

The Environment Agency warned that ammonia emissions can harm both human health and the wider environment.

Crockway Farms Ltd paid £16,000 to the Farm and Wildlife Advisory Group South West, a conservation charity working to reduce agricultural run-off and flood risk across Dorset catchments.

Senior Environment Officer David Womack said slurry regulations play a vital role in protecting waterways and communities.

“Slurry regulations protect people and the environment. It is essential everyone follows the rules,” he said.

“If a farmer is concerned about their slurry storage or environmental compliance, get in touch with us. We are ready to lend support and advice.

“We’d rather be approached earlier rather than later, after an environmental incident has happened.”

Collectively, the three businesses paid £33,500 towards environmental restoration and conservation projects across Dorset.