Cemex fined over coal dust shower

Leading cement manufacturer Cemex has paid £33,469 in fines and costs after pleading guilty to overfilling one of its coal storage units and causing a dust shower, which affected dozens of homes around the Rugby area.

According to the Environment Agency, more than 100 complaints were received from local residents who had found coal dust deposited on their homes and vehicles.

It is estimated that between 1.6 and 3.1 tonnes of coal dust were released over the town.

Environment manager David Hudson said the agency had been working hard to build trust between Cemex and the local community in Rugby.

"It's disappointing when incidents like this happen to undermine that trust. Since this incident I believe that things have been improving at the site but the Environment Agency will always deal firmly with incidents that could have been avoided," he added.

The company said it had responded immediately to the incident and had carried out a clean-up operation around the area.

In related news, an abattoir in Wigton was ordered to pay costs of over £3,000 last week after polluting a beck with effluent containing blood.

Written by Lauren Steadman