A WATER company has been fined £11,000 after failing to act quickly enough to stop raw sewage spilling into a stream.

And when pumps were eventually installed to stem the flow, they were not big enough to cope with the amount of water and effluence pouring from the damaged pipe into the brook at Prestwich Clough in Prestwich.

In a prosecution brought by the Environment Agency, United Utilities Water PLC pleaded guilty to a charge against the Water Resources Act 1991 following the pollution incident last year.

Bury magistrates were told last week that an Environment Agency officer was called to Prestwich Clough on November 6 last year after being tipped-off by a member of the public.

He discovered a cracked sewage pipe running across a brook at the clough and could see raw sewage pouring from it. The brook had turned grey and cloudy, there was sewage litter in the water and an unpleasant smell.

It was agreed that United Utilities would send contractors to the site with equipment to pump the sewage from around the damaged pipe whilst it was replaced. However, heavy rain overnight increased the amount of sewage in the system and overwhelmed the pumps, so that more raw sewage, diluted with rainwater, entered the brook.

It was well into the afternoon before equipment arrived and pumping began but workers were forced to bring in larger pumps the following day to cope with the increased discharge. A replacement pipe was installed on November 12.

The court heard the delay in getting suitable pumping equipment meant a large volume of sewage effluent had entered the watercourse.

In mitigation, United Utilities said that steps had since been taken to improve its response to pollution incidents and to ensure the right equipment was available when needed.

After the case, waste water district manager Peter Molyneaux said: "An unknown party is believed to have damaged the sewer causing it to discharge into the brook. Fortunately it appears to have caused no long-term damage to the environment.

"We accept this issue was not resolved as quickly as everybody hoped, partly due to the remote location of the pipe."

As well as the fine, the company was also ordered to pay £1,998 court costs.