Aquascot Group Ltd pled guilty to running a fish farm at Longhope Bay, Orkney, without a consent from the Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA) between April and August 1999. The company were fined £500 at Kirkwall Sheriff on 23 October 2000 for the offence. The prosecution was the result of a report submitted to the Procurator Fiscal by SEPA.

The issue came to SEPA's attention during correspondence with Aquascot, when it became clear that the company intended to operate a caged fish farm at Longhope Bay, South Walls Orkney at a site that did not have a Consent to discharge effluent. SEPA contacted the company and requested that they apply to SEPA for a consent to discharge before putting fish onto the site, and warned that to make a discharge from the site without a consent would contravene the Control of Pollution Act 1974. The company stocked the site in April 1999 .An application was made by the company in May a and a consent was granted in August the same year. However, between April and August , the company continued to discharge, despite being warned by SEPA not to.

Chris Matthews, Team Leader for the SEPA Orkney Team, commented after the case was dealt with:

"Where possible, SEPA chooses to work with industry and prevent pollution before it happens. However, this company ignored a warning from SEPA and continued to discharge into the surrounding water environment without meeting the necessary legislative criteria. This is clearly an unacceptable situation and SEPA is pleased that the court has recognised this type of behaviour is unacceptable and imposed a fine as appropriate."

ENDS

NOTES

• The Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA) was established under the Environment Act 1995.
  Its main duty is to protect the environment by controlling pollution to land, air and water in Scotland.