Oil firm breaks environmental rules nearly 500 times

## Summary
Oil firm breaks environmental rules nearly 500 times 14 minutes ago Share Save Stewart Whittingham North West Share Save BBC Essar, which owns Stanlow, has apologised for breaking environmental regulations A company which owns an oil refinery in Cheshire has admitted breaching environmental regulations nearly 500 times. Essar, which runs the Stanlow oil refinery in Ellesmere Port, has apologised for breaking the rules 491 times over a four-year period. She added: "The company accepts the enforcement action being taken by the Environment Agency for these historic breaches and regrets and apologises for these incidents. "There were no reports of environmental contamination, or impact on wildlife during the time of these breaches." Listen to the best of BBC Radio Merseyside on Sounds and follow BBC Merseyside on Facebook , X , and Instagram . More like this story Company apologises after 'non-toxic' dust covers homes Energy firm unveils £2bn plan for low-carbon plant Related links Environment Agency Ellesmere Port Environment Warrington

## Article Content
Oil firm breaks environmental rules nearly 500 times
14 minutes ago
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Stewart Whittingham
North West
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BBC
Essar, which owns Stanlow, has apologised for breaking environmental regulations
A company which owns an oil refinery in Cheshire has admitted breaching environmental regulations nearly 500 times.
Four of the offences included discharging higher-than-permitted levels of cyanide into the Manchester Ship Canal, a nearby river and a local brook.
The offences were committed between 2018 and 2020.
Essar, which runs the Stanlow oil refinery in Ellesmere Port, has apologised for breaking the rules 491 times over a four-year period.
It pleaded guilty to 12 charges brought by the Environment Agency at Chester Magistrates' Court. The case will be heard again on 14 July for case management at Warrington Magistrates' Court.
The Manchester Ship Canal runs for 36 miles from Eastham in Wirral to Salford
A spokeswoman for Essar said the company "takes its responsibilities for wastewater management extremely seriously" and has taken steps to "address the causes of these breaches".
She added: "The company accepts the enforcement action being taken by the Environment Agency for these historic breaches and regrets and apologises for these incidents.
"There were no reports of environmental contamination, or impact on wildlife during the time of these breaches."
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More like this story
Company apologises after 'non-toxic' dust covers homes
Energy firm unveils £2bn plan for low-carbon plant
Related links
Environment Agency
Ellesmere Port
Environment
Warrington

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## Expert Analysis

### Merits
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### Areas for Consideration
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### Implications
- The case will be heard again on 14 July for case management at Warrington Magistrates' Court.
- She added: "The company accepts the enforcement action being taken by the Environment Agency for these historic breaches and regrets and apologises for these incidents. "There were no reports of environmental contamination, or impact on wildlife during the time of these breaches." Listen to the best of BBC Radio Merseyside on Sounds and follow BBC Merseyside on Facebook , X , and Instagram .

### Expert Commentary
This article covers environmental, company, environment topics. Readability: Flesch-Kincaid grade 0.0. Word count: 273.