Scottish Water fined £19k over Clyde raw sewage release

Raw sewage escaped into the River Clyde

Scottish Water has been fined £19,000 after untreated sewage was released into the River Clyde in Glasgow.

A pumping station failure led to 650,000 cubic metres of waste water entering the river in May and June 2016.

The smell was so bad locals were unable to open windows and had to wash soft furnishings to get rid of the odour.

The company admitted breaking the law governing water quality and apologised "unreservedly".

The problem arose when a blockage caused a mechanical failure at the Kinning Park waste water station.

Over a three-week period the waste poured into the river from three overflows situated between Glasgow Green and Springfield quay.

'Avoidable incident'

Sara Shaw, procurator fiscal, wildlife and environment, said: "Scottish Water failed to take effective remedial steps to address various issues that had been identified over a period of months leading up to this incident.

"Had those steps been taken at an earlier stage the incident could have been avoided.'"

The firm admitted two charges under the Water Environment and Water Services (Scotland) Act 2003 at Glasgow Sheriff Court.

The company's chief operating officer Peter Farrer insisted Scottish Water took its environmental responsibilities seriously.

"This incident was very regrettable and we apologise unreservedly for it," he said.

He added: "Scottish Water is responsible for the treatment of 1 billion litres of wastewater every day and has 1,827 wastewater treatment works. Incidents like this are very rare."