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Crap Towns / Barking and Dagenham / Pollution incidents

How often does Barking and Dagenham get polluted?

24 serious pollution incidents have been recorded in Barking and Dagenham or within 1 km of it since 2016, the joint 23rd most of the 948 English towns that have had one. 1 was major, the worst kind. The most recent came in July 2026 and put algae in the water. Unidentified oil turned up in 5 of them.

The incidents
WhenWhatWhereImpact
July 2026AlgaeIn the waterSignificant
June 2026Commercial waste and household wasteOn the land and in the airSignificant
July 2025An unidentified pollutantIn the waterSignificant
March 2025Waste oilIn the waterSignificant
February 2025Unidentified oilIn the waterSignificant
January 2025Unidentified oilIn the waterSignificant
May 2024NoiseIn the airSignificant
June 2023SludgeIn the waterSignificant
February 2023Grey waterIn the waterSignificant
June 2022Crude sewageIn the waterSignificant
December 2021NoiseIn the airSignificant
October 2021Unidentified oilIn the waterSignificant
May 2021SmokeIn the airSignificant
July 2020An unidentified pollutantOn the landSignificant
November 2019SludgeIn the waterSignificant
November 2019NoiseOn the land and in the airSignificant
November 2019Unidentified oilIn the waterSignificant
December 2017SludgeIn the water and on the landMajor
August 2017SludgeIn the water and on the landSignificant
August 2016Commercial wasteOn the landSignificant
June 2016FumesIn the airSignificant
June 2016VerminOn the landSignificant
April 2016Unidentified oilIn the waterSignificant
March 2016General biodegradable material or wasteIn the airSignificant
Nearby towns
TownDistanceSerious incidents since 2016
Havering6.4 km32
Waltham Forest11.5 km27
Barking and Dagenham–24
Bexley9.3 km17
Newham6.9 km14
Redbridge6.1 km11
Greenwich9.4 km9
Buckhurst Hill11.3 km3
Purfleet-on-Thames11.5 km3
Aveley9.4 km2