Civil sanctions imposed by the Environment Agency: 1 January 2024 to 31 December 2024
Updated 10 February 2025
Applies to England
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1. Our approach to applying civil sanctions
A variable monetary penalty (VMP) is a proportionate monetary penalty we may impose for the more serious cases of non-compliance.
We may issue VMPs for more serious offences, including:
- when there is evidence of negligence or mismanagement
- when there is an environmental impact
- to remove an identifiable financial gain or saving as a result of the breach
- where prosecution is not necessary or can be avoided to get the most appropriate outcome
搁别补诲听annex 1聽to find out how we calculate a VMP.
We will always try to recover the money we have spent on work connected with an offence and imposing a VMP. We can serve an聽Enforcement Cost Recovery Notice,聽which will require the offender to pay the actual cost to the Environment Agency.
This list shows details of聽VMPs imposed by the Environment Agency between 1 January 2024 and 31 December 2024. It may include聽VMPs we have not published before.
1.1 Water Resources Act 1991
Ilchester Estates (reference VMP24)
The penalty was imposed on 23 October 2024 for the amount 拢19,777.69.
The offence was to abstract without a licence, or other than in accordance with a licence or a Groundwater Investigation Consent or abstract without a valid exemption or cause or permit any other person to do the same 鈥� Sections 24(1) and 24(4)(a). It relates to the over-abstraction of water at Ilchester Estates, Dorset in 2023.
They also paid Environment Agency costs of 拢8,298.60.