Why is Scotia Gas, a national gas distributor, supporting the unauthorised Crouchland Biogas plant?

• 27 May 2016: Crouchland solicitors asked for an adjournment to the legal case against them by the Environment Agency. They requested until the end of July but Worthing Magistrates Court agrees to 24 June.
• 17 May 2016: The Traffic Inquiry into Farm Fuel Limited reconvened. A decision is pending.
• 11-12 May 2016: The Appeal against the Cert. of Lawfulness was heard in Chichester. Teh room was full of QC's, barristers and solicitors. A Decision pending.

The ENVIRONMENT AGENCY has initiated legal proceedings against Crouchland Farms Limited, in relation to the pollution of the River Kird in December 2013. The matter is due to be heard at Worthing Magistrates Court on 27 May 2016. Crouchland Farms Ltd. and Crouchland Biogas Ltd. activities are inextricably linked; Leon Mekitarian is director of both and Angus Cameron (Chairman, Crouchland Biogas Ltd.) was previously a Director of Crouchland Farms Ltd. No news yet from the EA on the other significant pollution incidents of 2015 and 2016.

Barry Evans resigned his directorship from Crouchland Biogas limited on 29 March 2016. It is not yet known if he has also relinquished his shares in the company.
https://www.facebook.com/poreorg/posts/1701879656718639:0

Actress, Julie Walter's with her farmer husband Grant Roffey, go public: www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3511059/Julie-Walters-war-biofuel-plant-near-rural-idyll-Actress-blasts-facility-killing-wildlife-emits-stench-strong-people-t-sit-gardens.html

P.O.R.E is fundraising to fund the legal representation at the four Crouchland Biogas appeal hearings. We welcome any further donations of items or services for the auction which will run for 7 weeks. Please Email with details of your auction item donation.
http://www.jumblebee.co.uk/crouchlandbiogasappealsfundraisingevent#none
The auction will conclude at 6pm on Thursday 21st April 2016.

Crouchland Biogas appear to have engaged a new PR company to replace their last one, ironically named 'Local Dialogue'.
26 March: The latest one, Alpaca shares the same directors as Aardvark, who are the environmental consultants for Crouchland Biogas. It will be interesting to see how Alpaca try to spin an environment polluting plant like Crouchland Biogas into a good news story. Their name, Alpaca Communications, suggests there might be even more pulling of wool over eyes.

SGN have tried to disassociate themselves from Crouchland Biogas Ltd and have stated that CBG Ltd is an ‘autonomous company’; separate from SGN.

SGN feel they have no corporate responsibility for the actions of this ‘autonomous’ company’, which their Chief Executive Officer Mr John Morea, proudly reported in his 2013 Annual Report to shareholders, that Crouchland Biogas Ltd was SGN's ‘partner’.

SGN just happen to have a fixed and floating charge on the property and undertakings of Crouchland Biogas Ltd, the ‘autonomous’ but nevertheless ‘partner’ company that SGN apparently have no corporate responsibility for; albeit a company that has multiple recorded breaches of their Environment Agency Permit, has caused significant and serious pollution events, is operating without planning permission and is the subject of an ongoing Traffic Commissioners Public Inquiry. Readers can draw their own conclusions.

23rd March update on the pollution; from the Environment Agency: We would like to thank the community again for all the information and support that you are providing related to this incident. The clean-up operation is ongoing and the operator continues to reduce the amount of pollutant by tankering. We have had an increased presence on site working to mitigate any further impacts on the local environment. Our monitoring will continue over the bank holiday and we will provide updates on the ongoing response. We are using all our available regulatory powers to ensure the operator continues to comply with our instructions including the disposal of the pollutant. Despite the improving situation we are still warning that people and animals should stay away from the polluted area whilst our emergency response is ongoing. We continue to work with our enforcement teams to ensure the operator complies with the conditions of their permit. We will keep you updated as this situation evolves.

Our comment back to them is:
"It does rather seem that when you, along with Crouchland Biogas Ltd. and the Gas Bus Alliance Ltd. were promoting the benefits of biomethane, you were calling each other 'partners', including your CEO - John Morea - in the SGN annual report. Now that Crouchland Biogas Limited is receiving so much negative publicity, it seems that the 'partnership' has been replaced with an arms length / nothing-to-do-with-us approach. You SGN, are the conduit that allows Crouchland Biogas to introduce their biomethane into the national grid! I’m afraid that your attitude is slightly dated and closer to the times when retailers used to wash their hands of suppliers actions. I think you’ll find that in today's climate, the right thing to do is to take responsibility for your suppliers actions and not wash your hands."

When SGN were asked why they have partnered, for 20 years, with Crouchland Biogas, they replied:
"Crouchland Biogas Ltd. (CBL) is an autonomous company separate from SGN. Our responsibility is to ensure the green biogas CBL produces is of the correct specification and quality and is fit for use in the UK’s gas distribution system. We were very sorry to hear about this latest incident involving the Environment Agency and of course note your concerns. However, the ownership and operation of the site remains the responsibility of CBL and it is that company you should seek to speak with directly regarding their operations affecting your community."

21 March: So we now have tankers of the pollution being returned to Crouchland Biogas from the affected streams, in the same tankers that export the digestate away from the plant. But with the lagoons so totally full (above their freeboard levels - see photo) - where on earth are they going to put it all?
Presumably they will have to dump it all into lagoon 1, which was just meant to be dirty water, like lagoons 2 and 4 (which we now know have digestate in because they have leaked and polluted our lands!)
Then they will have digestate in every lagoon - and Mr Mekitarian will have to admit that there are no longer any agricultural lagoons left which just contain dirty water.
The lagoons need closing down as Crouchland Biogas have clearly shown over and over again that they cannot manage their polluting digestate.
Come on EA. Everyone will be behind you! You have enough evidence by now. You know you have not been told the truth.

Have you seen the comment from SGN on the pollution incident? https://www.facebook.com/SGNgas/posts/1691357614437510 "SGN Thank you for your post. Crouchland Biogas Limited (CBL) is an autonomous company separate from SGN. Our responsibility is to ensure the green biogas CBL produces is of the correct specification and quality and is fit for use in the UK’s gas distribution system. We were very sorry to hear about this latest incident involving the Environment Agency and of course note your concerns. However, the ownership and operation of the site remains the responsibility of CBL and it is that company you should seek to speak with directly regarding their operations affecting your community."

BBC News coverage tonight, especially for the many interested parties around the country.
Feel free to comment on Ed Sault's report under the video.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=neWqtWfB_cg&sns=em

19 March: This morning's update.
Crouchland are continually pumping out the pollution 1.5 kms downstream from the spill - multiple loads which will continue for days
BBC filming all morning - coverage on BBC news -TONIGHT 6.25PM
Contamination of the Ancient Woodland continues beyond this point into Ifold, where the EA are now setting up other points on private land from which to pump out the pollution.

Take a moment to comment at the bottom of the County Times article:
http://www.wscountytimes.co.uk/news/local/plaistow-farmer-devastated-as-land-set-aside-for-lambing-is-polluted-1-7284772