A TIVERTON company making toiletries and beauty products has been ordered to pay £12,196 in fines and costs after a chemical escaped from its premises into the River Lowman and killed around 1,000 fish including trout and salmon.

The case, brought by the Environment Agency, concerned an incident on August 20 last year when a tanker lorry arrived at Broadoak Toiletries’ premises in Tiverton Way to deliver a detergent, Sodium Lauryl Ethoxy Sulphate, used in the manufacture of toiletries. The detergent is stored in a 30,000 litre tank.

A company employee watched as the tanker driver pumped detergent into the tank. As it reached its maximum capacity the employee shouted to the driver to stop. Unfortunately, the driver failed to hear this instruction and continued pumping resulting in a spill.

Broadoak Toiletries implemented its ‘spill containment procedure’ and recovered as much of the escaped detergent as it could by washing down the storage area and pumping detergent  and wash water into drums. The next day (Aug 21) heavy rain flushed the remaining detergent from the site and into the River Lowman via surface water drains and an interceptor tank.

Later that day the Environment Agency received reports of a ‘chemical smell’ in the River Lowman and dead and dying fish. Agency officers arrived at the river and found hundreds of dead fish including salmon, trout, bullheads and minnows.

Sodium Lauryl Ethoxy Sulphate kills fish by damaging their gills causing them to suffocate.

“This was a serious pollution incident that resulted in the loss of at least 1,000 fish including 281 salmon and trout. Salmon numbers on the River Lowman are already low, so a fish kill on this scale is a cause for serious concern. Companies must be especially careful when taking delivery of potentially harmful chemicals,” said Catherine Lockwood for the Environment Agency.

Broadoak Toiletries Limited of Tiverton Way, Tiverton were fined £8,000 and ordered to pay £4,196 costs after pleading guilty to an offence under the Sectinn 85 (1) of the Water Resources Act of causing noxious or polluting matter to enter controlled waters on August 21, 2009.