The Yorkshire Dales River Trust, based in Pateley Bridge, is set to receive £200,000 from a global business after it breached environmental permits.

During construction on a major road, Balfour Beatty Group Ltd repeatedly allowed silt-contaminated water to leave the site, leading to the pollution of rivers in the area.

As well as the payment, the company has made changes to the site to prevent further incidents and introduced new measures for future construction projects.

The money will go towards the trust’s Rivers in Elmet project, an initiative focused on tackling sediment, nutrient pollution and habitat modification in the area.

Three other companies are also contributing to local charities, totalling £470,000 for environmental improvements in the area.

These payments are not fines, but are legally-binding Enforcement Undertakings with the Environment Agency, which require the companies take steps to prevent repeat offences and put right the damage it has caused.

The series of incidents relating to Balfour Beatty came about when it was building a new section of the East Leeds Orbital Route in 2020.

In September, after heavy rain, soil washed off the site and into nearby land drains, causing pollution of Mill Beck and Rake Beck, and a number of tributaries over 6.5km long. Environment Agency officers went to enforce mitigation measures.

Almost two months later, heavy silt pollution at Cock Beck was traced to another part of the construction site; although the mitigation measures had been put in at one location of the construction site nothing had been done in this location.

As part of its remedial work the company has also tankered silty water to Yorkshire Water wastewater treatment works at a cost of £650,000.