‘Crisis’ awaits as rivers ravaged by raw sewage

POLLUTION A MAJOR RISK TO HUMAN HEALTH AND ECOSYSTEM

AROUND 40% of rivers in England including many in the North East are being polluted with raw sewage which is contributing to an ‘urgent environmental crisis,’ according to a report.

If more action isn’t taken it is claimed there will be no healthy rivers left in England and Wales within a decade, putting people and wildlife at risk.

It follows a nine-month investigation by conservation charity WWF, which said there are 17,684 licensed emergency sewer overflows managed by water companies across England and Wales that are meant to discharge raw sewage directly into the environment only during extreme rainfall.

But WWF has found they are discharging far more frequently, detailing 1,902 pollution incidents reported by the nine water and sewerage companies operating in England alone, a first rise in such incidents since 2012.

In this region, according to the report, there were 38 sewage pollution incidents per 10,000km of sewers last year in the Northumbrian Water area.

This was the third-highest figure in the country behind South West Water, with 115, and Yorkshire Water, with 46.

But there was better news in analysis of waste water pollution, that includes sewage discharge, which was found in 17% of rivers in the Northumbrian Water area, with only Welsh Water having a lower figure of 15%.

Catherine Moncrieff, freshwater policy and programme manager at WWF, said: “While there has been a lot of investment by water companies it hasn’t been enough to keep pace with growing pollution and with more extreme weather events the sewage system it is at breaking point and isn’t able to meet demand.”

But Richard Warneford, Northumbrian Water’s wastewater director, vigorously defended its record.

He said: “Over the past 20 years we have invested more than £1 billion in our sewer network, reducing the risk of pollution to our water courses and the risk of flooding to our customers.

“As the report highlights, our watercourses in the North East are significantly less likely to experience pollution than those elsewhere in the country.

“Reducing pollution remains a real priority for us.

“We also work in partnership with environmental charities and have introduced approximately 70 volunteer water rangers who patrol our water courses and river to ensure that they are among the cleanest in the country. ”

Ben Stafford, head of campaigns at WWF, agreed everyone had a role to play.

“Many of us are also contributing to the problem. No one party can fix this problem. Water companies clearly have a key role to play, but we also need greater action through regulation.”

Research shows the water industry and agriculture are the main sectors behind the damage, and four out of five rivers (80%) in England and Wales are currently failing to achieve ‘good ecological status.’ It said the number of healthy rivers in England has declined from 27% in 2010 to 14% in 2017. If this continues, by 2025 we might have no healthy rivers. An Environment Agency spokesperson said: “There have been dramatic improvements to water quality over the last two decades but there is more to do to continue this trend and protect the environment in the future. “We have set more stringent targets for the water sector, stated they must do more to reduce pollution incidents and in the most serious cases taken enforcement action leading to record fines.” A Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs spokesman said: “Our rivers are the cleanest they have been since industrial times and we’re working with the water industry to meet tougher targets.”

With more extreme weather events the sewage system it is at breaking point and isn’t able to meet demand Catherine Moncrieff