Environmental law is costing businesses over

Courts handed out more than £3.5m in fines and 11 years imprisonment last year for companies, directors and individuals who broke environmental laws, the Environment Agency (EA) revealed today.

Around 300 companies were prosecuted in 2006, including utility company, Thames Water, which topped the list with a fine of £191,600 for water pollution.

Fines rose by almost £1m on the previous year, but the agency still called for harsher penalties on environmental crime and ad... (190 more words)

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