SOUTHERN Water has been fined £8,000 and ordered to pay £1,324 costs after vandalism at its Sutton Valence Sewage Treatment Works led to effluent polluting a nearby watercourse.

In an Environment Agency prosecution at Maidstone Magistrates Court, Southern Water admitted breaching a 1984 consent not to exceed agreed levels on effluents discharged into nearby watercourses.

The court heard that on September 17, 2002 Southern Water had contacted the Environment Agency to say vandals had pressed a stop button on the sludge return pump at the treatment works.

The incident led to a fine sediment of sludge passing out of the works to a kilometre downstream.

Water samples showed biochemical oxygen demand levels were more than 22 times the permitted levels and the suspended solids level was more than 100 times the allowed figure.

In defence, Southern Water said it quickly used 12,000 gallons of fresh water to flush the stream and is spending £1.7 million upgrading the refurbishing the works.