Chippenham farm fined over £18,000 after pollution incidents
JD Spencer Farm Partnership, of Manor Farm, admitted to allowing slurry entering the water in November 2023 and March 2024
A Chippenham based farm has been fined over £18,000 for polluting the Bristol Avon river on two occasions.
JD Spencer Farm Partnership, of Manor Farm, admitted to allowing slurry to enter the water in November 2023 and March 2024 at Swindon Magistrates Court on March 6 2026.
It also pleaded guilty two charges of two of failing to plan the spreading of slurry.
The partnership was fined £7,000, a victim surcharge of £2,800 and costs of £8,944, after an investigation by the Environment Agency.
The first incident, which took place in November 2023, resulted in slurry entering a Bristol Avon tributary, significantly affecting water quality downstream with low dissolved oxygen levels and ammonia presence.
During an interview, farm co-owner Winston Spencer denied recent slurry spreading or pumping from the lagoon onto the fields, but acknowledged that the farm's slurry storage facilities were full and slurry run-off had occurred.
He suggested this had been due to heavy rainfall washing off slurry which he had spread the previous month.
In March 2024, a second spill occurred, causing pollution at Langley Burrell, identified by the Environment Agency to be from farm fields following a public report.
In another interview Spencer admitted that wet slurry had been deposited, stating that he believed it had entered the field drains and run into the stream.
Spencer also said the partnership had no land drainage plans for the fields in their holding.
The Environment Agency used one of their drones to photograph the areas where slurry had run off.
David Womack, senior environment officer, said:
"This incident was avoidable and should never have happened. Farmers have a responsibility to ensure their organic manures are properly stored and spread.
"If farmers have concerns about not having sufficient slurry storage capacity, we recommend they contact us. We can give advice on current legislation, help ensure slurry calculations are accurate and reduce the pollution risk by identifying non-compliant structures.
"If an incident does occur, we would urge those responsible to report it as soon as possible to the Environment Agency. This can help reduce any environmental impact. Incidents can be reported 24hrs a day on 0800 80 70 60."