One of the world’s wealthiest women has been fined £28,000 after her estate exceeded water extraction limits during a drought, using the equivalent of three Olympic-sized swimming pools.
The Ilchester Estate in Dorset, owned by the Hon Charlotte Townshend—who is worth an estimated £489 million according to the latest Sunday Times Rich List —was found to have significantly overused its licensed water supply.
The estate, which spans 15,000 acres of homes, offices, water gardens, and farmland, also owns much of Holland Park and its surrounding areas, reports the Express.
Between December 2022 and July 2023, during an official drought, the estate consumed 60% more water than permitted. It held a licence from the Environment Agency ( EA) to extract 66.6 cubic metres of water per day from a spring feeding the River Frome, a rare chalk stream, of which only 200 exist worldwide—85% of them in the UK.
An investigation by the EA revealed the estate had exceeded its limit by nearly 7,500 cubic metres—roughly the volume of three Olympic-sized swimming pools. Officials determined that the estate had “deliberately flouted” the restrictions despite previous warnings and that the excessive water use likely caused environmental damage to the river and its surrounding ecosystem.
This was not the first warning issued to the estate. In 2018, it had been advised to apply for an increased abstraction limit but failed to do so.
As a result of the breach, Ilchester Estate has been ordered to pay nearly £19,800 in penalties, along with approximately £8,300 in legal costs.
Carolyn Lane, senior environment officer for the Environment Agency, said: “In this case, the Ilchester Estate not only deliberately flouted the conditions, they did so during a drought, when it is likely that damage will have been done to the river and the surrounding environment it supports.”
A spokesperson for Ilchester Estates responded: “We deeply regret the historic breach of the water extraction licence. Since then, the estate has invested in water infrastructure to reduce leaks and now monitors abstraction on a daily basis.
“The estate remains committed to protecting and enhancing the diverse natural environment under its management.”
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