Glastonbury festival fined $45,000 after sewage leakGlasto

Glastonbury festival fined $45,000 after sewage leak

United Kingdom’s iconic Glastonbury festival has been fined £31,000–just upwards of $45,000 USD–after thousands of gallons of human sewage seeped into a nearby stream. The fiasco was responsible for harming the Whitelake river’s water quality and ultimately lead to the death of 42 fish in 2014.

The district judge Simon Cooper was largely impressed with the festival’s efforts, though he admitted they could have contacted authorities with greater haste following the accident.

Still, Cooper found Glastonbury had “low culpability” for the fiasco and ultimately praised its response and actions, fining the group a mere £12,000 (approximately $17,600 USD) in fees and £19,000 (approximately $27,900 USD) in prosecution costs.

The Environment Agency, however, argued otherwise. According to environment manager, Ian Withers, the festival was unable to structurally accommodate its own rapid growth. Although there has been some talk of moving the festival’s 2017 iteration, both the defendant and the judge denied the accuracy of these claims.

The Glastonbury festival is known for its humble operations and has taken place on founder Michael Eavis’ personal farmland since its inception. The festival is also humbly run, with minimal salaries for directors and large donations, instead, to WaterAid, Oxfam, and Greenpeace.

Said a beleaguered Michael Eavis of the suit: “It’s a great result and I think we were listened to fairly. I don’t really think it was necessary to get this far. We pleaded guilty to make it easier for them yet they still wanted to pursue this case.

“I think it was a bit of a waste of time, to be honest with you. It wasn’t that serious a crime really. We did our very, very best when we found the leak – we really did all that we should have done within the timescale.

“This wasn’t really necessary,” said Eavis. “We should have been doing something else. We’re putting together the biggest show in the world in four weeks’ time.”

Via: The Guardian

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