Southern Water discharged enormous volumes of raw sewage into protected coastal waters for nearly six years causing “very considerable environmental damage” because it was cheaper than treating it, a court has heard.
This was “the worst case brought by the Environment Agency in its history”, the court was told. Southern Water had acted “deliberately” and had reaped “considerable financial advantage” by allowing the discharges.
The Environment Agency’s biggest ever investigation uncovered how the privately owned company dumped untreated sewage into seas that were home to shellfish beds and were supposed to be some of the most protected marine environments in the country.