Bramall Construction receive warning over oil spill

A large construction company has been reprimanded after an oil leak polluted a nearby river system.

The River Tawd in Skelmersdale was polluted in November last year, when Bramall Construction was carrying out demolition. The firm were demolishing an existing school to make way for a new special needs school. In defence, the firm stated that an oil storage tank leaked when it was being moved by one of their subcontractors.

The firm did not receive a fine however and instead just received a letter of warning from the Environment Agency.

Ian Gaskell from the Environment agency stated:

“Through our investigations which took place through a complex system of underground rivers, and culverted rivers, we were able to trace the source of the pollution.”

Local residents and campaigners have complained that the warning was just a ‘slap on the wrist’ for the firm and much steeper action should have been taken. The river has been polluted by accident in the past, in June 2009 a leak from a local dairy caused damage to the river’s eco system.