THREE Dorset farm companies have paid £33,500 to environmental charities after a probe into their failure to store slurry correctly – causing pollution in county waterways.

The Environment Agency (EA) launched an investigation into the failures at three county farms, who have now agreed to pay the sums as part of legally-binding enforcement undertakings, which avoid prosecution in return for funding environmental efforts.

Crockway Farms Ltd, Drummers Farming Limited and Crutchley Farms Partnership were found to have failed to follow regulations designed to protect waterways.

In two cases, poorly managed slurry stores led to pollution entering watercourses, while in the third, a farm installed new slurry stores without securing the required permit.

All three businesses have since introduced stronger measures to ensure full compliance with environmental rules.

Drummers Farming Limited, a farm near Sherbourne, caused two slurry pollution incidents in the spring of 2024.
In April that year, slurry from its lagoon entered the Leigh Tributary of the Beer Hackett Stream, also known as the River Wriggle.

Alarms activated, but because the event happened during the middle of the night, immediate action was not taken.

In the second incident, laboratory analysis of water samples collected during the Environment Agency investigation showed levels of ammonia which could be lethal to aquatic life.

In both cases, the impact of the slurry could be identified more than 1.2 miles downstream.

Changes have now been put in place to reduce future risk, including a significant investment in slurry storage, removing an overflow pipe and better monitoring the use of slurry.

The farm gave £10,000 to the Dorset Wildlife Trust, which will be used for the Winfrith and Tadnoll Wetland Restoration Project.

The Crutchley Farms Partnership was approached by the EA after officers traced pollution to Marsh Farm, near Bridport, in October 2023 after being found in the Mangerton Brook.

Slurry was found entering the stream from a concrete tank’s overflow pipe because a pump had failed.

Organic waste was identifiable more than 300m downstream from the farm, with significant deterioration in the ecology over 800m.

The farm put measures in place to prevent further pollution incidents, including a text warning system, and daily inspections.

As a result, the company gave £7,500 to the Dorset Wildlife Trust for a trees and wetland project.

Crockway Farms Ltd, an intensive pig farm, failed to obtain an environmental permit before making major changes to the site – installing two new slurry stores.

Strict permits are required for pig farms, as the EA must consider ammonia emissions and the risk of effluent discharges.

Crockway Farms gave £16,000 to the Farm and Wildlife Advisory Group South West, a conservation charity in Dorset which works to reduce farm run off and flood risk in catchments.

Senior environment officer, David Womack, said: “Slurry regulations protect people and the environment. It is essential everyone follows the rules.

“If a farmer is concerned about their slurry storage or environmental compliance, get in touch with us. We are ready to lend support and advice.

“We’d rather be approached earlier rather than later, after an environmental incident has happened.”

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