Fish death incident costs Worcestershire firm over £1 million
It's after a pollution incident in 2018
Last updated 20th Jan 2026
A Worcestershire company has made a financial contribution of over £1 million to come into compliance and to deal with the effects of a pollution incident in 2018.
An investigation by the Environment Agency has ended in Mettis Aerospace Limited of Redditch, making the payment under an Enforcement Undertaking (EU).
An EU is a voluntary offer made by companies and individuals to make amends for their offending.
Mettis Aerospace Limited accepted that discharges from their metals installation, a site permitted by the Environment Agency, had caused a fish-kill incident.
The Environment Agency said online: "The discharges, from the site’s surface water drainage system, arose from the uncontrolled overfilling of a process tank on the site and inadequate containment measures.
They added: "This meant a solution of caustic and sodium aluminate was able to leak into an unprotected surface water drain and into an adjacent watercourse. Approximately 1,000 fish were killed."
As an alternative to prosecution for the offence, Mettis offered an EU including spending some £504,240 on site infrastructure improvements.
Details of the EU include:
- Donations to environmental enhancement projects in Redditch and the Black Country totalling £379,500
- Initial pollution clean-up costs of £111,268
- Payment of the Environment Agency’s initial investigation costs of £9,324
- Site infrastructure improvements, training and management systems development and certification costs of £504,240
- Loss of amenity compensation payments to local charities £7,000
- Payment of Environment Agency’s costs for assessing compliance with the EU £13,026
A spokesperson for the Environment Agency said:
"Protecting the environment and taking action against those that damage or threaten this is our utmost priority.
"While we will always prosecute in the most serious cases, enforcement undertakings are an effective enforcement tool to allow companies to put things right and contribute to environmental improvements.
"They enable businesses to become more compliant and prevent repeat offending by improving their procedures, helping ensure future compliance with environmental requirements."