An environmental body has condemned an “extremely serious case” of pollution in Perthshire that led to freshwater mussels being killed.
Brendan Craig, investigating officer with the Scottish Environment Protection Agency said the pollution of the River Lyon “had a significant impact”.
On Tuesday Alan Smith, 48, and Charles Kippen, 52, both directors of the now liquidated A&C Construction (Scotland) Ltd, were fined a combined total of £11,000 at Perth Sheriff Court after pleading guilty to polluting the Inverinain Burn and River Lyon in Perthshire.
Smith was fined £6,000 while Kippen was fined £5,000.
Smith’s fine included a £1,000 penalty after he admitted that he failed to ensure effective silt mitigation and water diversion measures were in place to prevent pollution entering the Allt Coire Ghlais, Allt Coire Chrechainn and Allt Mhoille in Argyll.
The pollution of the River Lyon led to freshwater pearl mussels being injured and killed following a build-up of silt.
Mr Craig described the Perthshire problem as “an extremely serious case of pollution” in what he claimed is a “very important watercourse”.
“The involved parties failed time and time again to install the appropriate mitigation measures which, in turn, led to repeated pollution issues,” Mr Craig added.
“This has had a significant impact on both the watercourse and surrounding ecosystems, including the habitat of rare freshwater pearl mussels.
“We will always try to assist those involved in such construction projects to ensure they comply with the relevant regulations by offering advice and guidance on best practice.
“However, in this case, the contractors failed to follow our advice and failed to respond to repeated warnings.
“As a direct result of them failing to follow our advice and warnings they caused pollution of the River Lyon over a prolonged period of time.
“This prosecution should serve as a strong reminder that practices which do not meet environmental legislation will be punished accordingly.”
Shawater Ltd was previously fined £4,000 at Perth Sheriff Court after admitting it permitted workers to cause pollution in the Inverinain Burn and River Lyon.