Apology after sewage spill utility fined

SCOTTISH Water has apologised after raw sewage polluted a burn running alongside gardens and a golf course.

The utility was fined £7,500 after waste from 104 homes and a distillery poured into the Clyne Burn at Brora. Fifty-five dead fish were later recovered from the waterway.

Dornoch Sheriff Court heard this week that an automatic early warning signal from the pumping station to Scottish Water’s control desk in Glasgow was not acted on due to a mix-up.

It admitted knowingly permitting the continued discharge of untreated sewage effluent into the burn between 25 August and 1 September last year.

The company has since spent £50,000 on new equipment to ensure the problem does not occur again.

A spokesman said yesterday: “We care about the natural environment and are deeply sorry for the damage caused at Brora at the time.

“Our response could have been better and we want to prevent such incidents happening in the first place.”

He added: “We have invested in the equipment on site and want to learn lessons from the incident.”