Whisky distiller White & Mackay hit with oil pollution fine
The Glasgow-based distiller was fined £9,000 (€11,457) after pleading guilty at Tain Sheriff Court to leaking oil into the Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI), an important habitat for birds including ospreys, whooper swans and greylag geese.
The fusel oil spill - it is a flammable byproduct of the distillation process - occurred at the plant in August 2011, and represents a contravention of the Water Environment (Controlled Activities) (Scotland) Regulations 2011.
The leak from an oil storage tank and bund, a surrounding wall designed to contain spills, was discovered by officers from the Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA).
SEPA and the Health & Safety Executive (HSE) later concluded that the spill of fusel oil into Cromarty Firth could have been avoided, had Whyte & Mackay adequately monitored and maintained the fusel oil storage tank and bund.
Craig Harris, head of the wildlife and environment crime unit at the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service said: “This spillage of oil into the Cromarty Firth was entirely preventable. Industry must ensure the proper maintenance of their systems to ensure they meet their environmental obligations."
He added: “The discharge was made to an internationally important and sensitive site. Whilst the environmental impact was thankfully minimal in this instance, that was purely down to good fortune. There could have been grave consequences if the leak had gone undetected or if it had occurred during the breeding season.”
