The criminal case against bauxite mining company Windalco, over the 2019 fish kill in the Rio Cobre, was postponed on Thursday in the St Catherine Parish Court due to the unavailability of an attorney in the case.
When the matter was called up, the court was informed that the company's lawyer, Jacqueline Samuels Brown was absent, as a result of which case was pushed back to September 11.
But, in one significant development, the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions tendered additional information in the case.
Assistant DPP Dwayne Green said the office had done checks on the case-file from the National Environment and Planning Agency which took Windalco to court and determined that further documentation was required for the trial.
Disclosure should be made to the defence by June 30.
It's alleged that in 2019, effluent from Windalco escaped into the Rio Cobre, causing a massive fish kill and damage to other aquatic organisms.
Residents of Kent Village and surrounding areas were reportedly adversely affected by the discharge of the effluent into the river.
NEPA conducted an investigation and subsequently served an enforcement notice on the company.
Windalco was later summoned to court for breaches of the Wildlife Protection Act.
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