Yorkshire Water to pay £2.35m after South Yorkshire sewage pollution incidents
Environment Agency secures £2.35 million from Yorkshire Water after sewage pollution incidents
The Environment Agency has secured £2.35 million from Yorkshire Water for environmental improvements following a string of sewage pollution incidents affecting rivers across South Yorkshire, including those impacting Sheffield’s wider waterways.
The funding follows seven enforcement undertakings linked to pollution events between 2019 and 2023, with several incidents affecting the River Dearne - a key river flowing through Barnsley and Doncaster and part of the wider catchment connected to Sheffield’s river system.
The £2.35 million will be distributed to environmental charities working across South Yorkshire, with a significant portion going to the Don Catchment Rivers Trust, which operates across Sheffield and the wider River Don catchment.
Breakdown of South Yorkshire-linked funding includes:
- £500,000 to Don Catchment Rivers Trust after a storm tank failure at Lundwood Wastewater Treatment Works in Barnsley led to sewage entering the River Dearne
- £500,000 to the same trust following a burst rising main in Doncaster
- £150,000 to Yorkshire Wildlife Trust after an unauthorised discharge in Athersley South, Barnsley
Further funding tied to nearby areas includes £250,000 to the Calder and Colne Rivers Trust after a sewer collapse in Kirklees, impacting connected waterways within the wider South Yorkshire catchment.
The money will fund environmental improvements such as wetland creation, floodplain restoration and nature recovery projects - many of which are expected to benefit river systems flowing through and around Sheffield, including the River Don.
In addition to financial contributions, Yorkshire Water has carried out remedial work at affected sites, including infrastructure upgrades, improved monitoring systems and ecological surveys.
The company will also cover the Environment Agency’s investigation costs.
Jacqui Tootill, Water Industry Regulation Manager in Yorkshire, said: “While we continue to prosecute and sanction the most serious offences, Enforcement Undertakings allow companies to put right what went wrong and channel money directly into the environment.
“This £2.35 million will be invested back into the local area to enhance the environment, delivering real benefits for people and wildlife.
“We are continuing to drive meaningful improvements in water company performance, hold persistent offenders to account and ultimately create a cleaner water environment.”
The Environment Agency said enforcement undertakings are designed to ensure companies address environmental damage quickly, while directing funds into local projects without the need for lengthy court proceedings.
The action forms part of a wider national crackdown, with the regulator completing more than 10,000 inspections of water company assets in the past year, as scrutiny intensifies over pollution incidents affecting communities across South Yorkshire and Sheffield.
The Star revealed this week that sewage was discharged into a Sheffield river less than 48 hours before a children’s Easter duck race.
Families gathered along the Porter Valley in Endcliffe Park over Easter Sunday, where children paddled in the water at the popular duck race event - unaware that less than 48 hours earlier, sewage had been discharged into the same stretch of river.
A Yorkshire Water spokesperson confirmed the discharge, stating: “This was a permitted and short-term discharge as a result of heavy rainfall from Storm Dave over the weekend.”