A Co Monaghan business man pleaded guilty to a number of pollution offences and was fined a total of £14,000 at Dungannon Crown Court today (Tuesday).
Seamus McAnenly, Moy Bridge, Emyvale, was fined for making polluting discharges to a waterway.
On four separate occasions between 5-7 November 2011; 17 November 2011; 29 February 2012 and 6 April 2012, a Fishery Inspector with the Loughs Agency and Water Quality Inspector, acting on behalf of the Northern Ireland Environment Agency (NIEA), investigated water pollution incidents at Drumnakilly.
On each occasion the Inspectors detected suspended solids discharging from the quarry and entering the Drumnakilly Burn. The source of the pollution was traced upstream to McAnenly Quarries Limited where large quantities of sand wash had discharged to the waterway.
Samples taken at the time of the incident confirmed that the discharge contained high concentrations of suspended solids. The material represented by the sample contained polluting matter which would have been potentially harmful to fish life in a receiving waterway.
High concentrations of suspended solids in a watercourse can have an abrasive effect upon the gills of fish, making them susceptible to infection and can also interfere with their respiration.
Anyone wishing to report a pollution incident can call the 24 hour Water Pollution Hotline on 0800 80 70 60.
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