Three companies linked to a major illegal waste site near Grantham have contributed £98,000 towards nature recovery projects across Lincolnshire.
The payments form part of £168,000 secured by the Environment Agency from five businesses following waste and water offences in the county.
Lincolnshire Wildlife Trust will use the money for conservation work across rivers, coasts and countryside, supporting wildlife and helping habitats recover.
Bowring Transport Ltd paid £60,000, Construction and Environmental Services Ltd contributed £26,000 and Earthborn Transport Ltd handed over £12,000 after depositing construction and demolition waste without authorisation at Hook Cliff Farm, Gonerby Moor.
The unauthorised deposits took place between June 9, 2020 and April 14, 2022. The Environment Agency accepted enforcement undertakings from all three firms on November 7, 2025.
The undertakings formed part of a wider investigation into the farm, where officers found hazardous vehicle waste and mixed household and commercial rubbish. Investigators estimated that the site had received about 27,000 tonnes of construction and demolition waste.
A court case in December also resulted in suspended prison sentences for two men, a conditional discharge and criminal behaviour order for another man, and a £3,000 fine for a fourth company.
Anthony Critchley, of Hook Cliff Farm, must remove all unpermitted waste from the site by August 14. The Environment Agency said a further hearing concerning proceeds of crime and prosecution costs would take place in September.
The remaining £70,000 in the latest funding announcement came from two separate incidents elsewhere in Lincolnshire.
Fox (Owmby) Ltd paid £40,000 after depositing mixed waste without authorisation at Willow Holt Caravan and Camping Park in Tattershall between December 8, 2020 and January 28, 2021.
Crockway Farms Ltd contributed £30,000 following a slurry discharge from Danby Pig Unit near Market Rasen on April 7, 2023. The slurry spread across nearby land and entered a drainage ditch.
The Environment Agency said all five businesses also contributed towards its costs and completed measures to stop the offending, prevent it happening again or repair environmental harm.
Enforcement undertakings allow businesses or individuals suspected of certain environmental offences to propose legally binding action instead of facing prosecution or a financial penalty. The Environment Agency decides whether to accept each offer.
Laura Richardson, environment manager for the Environment Agency’s Lincolnshire and Northamptonshire area, said the agreements allowed companies to “put right what went wrong” while directing money into environmental work.
She said the £168,000 would enhance the environment and deliver benefits for people and wildlife.
Paul Learoyd, chief executive of Lincolnshire Wildlife Trust, said environmental breaches should not happen and that prevention remained the best outcome.
He said the contribution would support practical conservation work and strengthen habitats across the county.
Previous enforcement undertaking funding has helped the trust carry out environmental DNA surveys at Deeping Lakes Nature Reserve and manage reedbeds in northern Lincolnshire using low-impact machinery.
