Kentish Gazette Canterbury & District
‘Not enough being done to put this sewer right’
Diluted sewage pumped in river
FURIOUS villagers have accused water bosses of turning the Nailbourne Valley into an open sewer.
They blame Southern Water for contaminating the river and surrounding fields after failing to prevent the flooding of a sewer serving villages including Bekesbourne, Patrixbourne, Littlebourne and Barham.
At a public meeting at Bekesbourne Village Hall on Saturday, members of the Little Stour and Nailbourne River Management Group confronted the water company.
Alan Atkinson, from Bridge, complained that sewage had turned the Nailbourne into an “open sewer” while Littlebourne farmer Robert Spencer said 30 acres of his land had been transformed into a “polluted lake”.
It is the fourth time in the last decade the main sewer has flooded. As an emergency measure Southern Water is forced to pump diluted sewage into the river to stop foul water backing up into people’s homes.
It has led to homes having their toilet and washing facil- ities knocked out. Malcolm Mitchell, from Bishopsbourne, said: “The breakdown of the sewerage system is totally unacceptable in the 21st century.”
City councillor Tony Austin, who lives in Kingston and chairs the river management group, added: “There is no doubt that everyone is very angry that not enough is being done to put this sewer right.
“We must carry the fight to the highest levels.”
Among those representing Southern Water at the meeting was its network quality manager Martin Banks. He told villagers the firm had spent £700,000 trying to work out why ground water is overwhelming the sewer in wet winters and how to prevent it.
Southern Water also pledged to hold weekly drop-in sessions at venues along the valley so villagers can discuss issues with the company and with the Environment Agency.
What do you think? Call the Gazette newsdesk on 01227 475985 or email kentish gazette@thekmgroup.co.uk Earlier this month Southern Water spokesman Sam Underwood explained: “The rising groundwater in the Nailbourne and other seasonal watercourses in the area is overwhelming the sewerage system by infiltrating through pipe joints on both the public sewers that are our responsibility and on private drains.
“This waste water, which is heavily diluted by groundwater, has backed up through the sewers and left some customers unable to use their toilets and others at risk of having their homes flooded.
“To reduce the risk of this, we are now using temporary pumps to transport these diluted flows from the sewers into the Nailbourne, after they have passed through filters and screens.