Dear Southern Water…
Twelve-year-old Ruthie Gawley has written a powerful letter to Southern Water – in light of the water company deliberately dumping sewage into the sea.
Southern Water was fined a record £90million on 9 July at Canterbury Crown Court after pleading guilty to causing thousands of illegal discharges of sewage lasting a total of 61,704 hours into rivers and coastal waters in Kent, Hampshire and Sussex between 2010 and 2015.
In giving his sentence, the Honourable Mr Justice Johnson said: “Each of the 51 offences seen in isolation shows a shocking and wholesale disregard for the environment, for the precious and delicate ecosystems along the North Kent and Solent coastlines, for human health, and for the fisheries and other legitimate businesses that depend on the vitality of the coastal waters.”
During a Final Straw Foundation workshop during Emsworth Sailing Club’s Junior Week, Ruthie was inspired to put pen to paper. She wrote: “My Mother can remember a time when no-one got sick after swimming in the water, my Father checks an app telling him if there is raw sewage in the sea. Everyone in the seaside village of Emsworth feels these effects. The ocean means a lot to us. Hundreds of years ago, the sea kept Emsworth’s people alive. Now, it’s reversed, we have to play our part. You have to play your part, there is still time to change for you, us and the ocean.” Read the letter at finalstrawfoundation.org
Details on the largest criminal investigation in the Environment Agency’s history at: gov.uk/ government/news/record90m-fine-for-southern-waterfollowing-ea-prosecution