River Lagan: Farmer fined £750 for 2022 fish kill

Image caption, The affected part of the River Lagan was known for its wild brown trout

A County Down farmer has been fined and ordered to pay compensation after a fish kill on the River Lagan in 2022.

Alan Wilson, 66, from Lurgan Road in Dromore, pleaded guilty at Craigavon Magistrates' Court.

He was fined £750 and ordered to pay £960 in compensation to Stormont's Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs.

The court was told dead fish were confirmed in the River Lagan on the evening of 23 August 2022.

Investigators from the Northern Ireland Environment Agency took samples after observing dead fish in the waterway and on the riverbed.

Brown-coloured farm effluent was found to be discharging into the river from a black plastic pipe, smelling strongly of ammonia.

The contamination was caused by urea fertiliser - a concentrated nitrogen fertiliser - entering the River Lagan via storm drainage systems on Mr Wilson's farm.

The affected stretch of the River Lagan was known for its wild brown trout.

At the time, local anglers said it had been a major fish kill and described the impact as "a terrible loss".