Following the huge pollution incident which killed fish along 5 miles of the river in 2016 the company responsible has walked away with an “enforcement undertaking”. and a fine of £40,000. Contractors for the company were blamed but have gone into liquidation and the company who continued to operate while aware that their installation was faulty has been let off the hook by NRW with civil sanctions rather than a prosecution.

Glad to see the fine but once again NRW has allowed a wealthy polluter to remain free from prosecution and to continue to operate.

Pencefn feeds has fixed assets of around a million pounds, the fine is pocket money for them.

Here's the final say

A major river pollution incident in Mid Wales has cost a company £40,000.

Pencefn Feeds Ltd, near Tregaron has paid the sum after a detailed investigation by Natural Resources Wales (NRW) into the incident in December 2016.

Around18,000 fish are thought to have been killed on a five-mile stretch of the Teifi when approximately 44,000 gallons of pollutant leaked from an anaerobic digestion plant.

The West Wales Rivers Trust will receive £15,000 to restore fish habitat in the area.

And a further £5,000 will go to the Countryside Alliance Foundation to fund education activities about fish and the local environment for children in the Tregaron area.

The payments are consistent with a potential fine and have been made as an “enforcement undertaking”. This means that the money directly benefits the local environment.

The final £20,000 is being paid to recover all investigation and legal costs relating to the case.

Ann Weedy, Mid Wales operations manager for Natural Resources Wales, said:

“This has been a very complex and time-consuming investigation and we are pleased to see the financial penalty being used directly to repair some of the damage caused by this incident.

“This will make the Teifi a better place for fish and other wildlife by fencing river banks and developing riverside vegetation.