What a stink! Outrage over sewage in treasured lake
A SCENIC lake that has inspired William Wordsworth and Beatrix Potter is being used as a toilet by a water company, warn activists led by former pop star Feargal Sharkey.
Lake Windermere, England’s largest natural lake and a world heritage site, is being ruined by raw sewage deposits, the group says.
The majestic lake is the crowning glory of Britain’s biggest national park, drawing more than 17 million visitors a year. Its natural beauty inspired the English romantic poets, including Samuel Taylor Coleridge and William Wordsworth, who lived nearby.
But now the once-clear waters have become a breeding ground for toxic algae blooms caused by sewage dumps. It poses a threat to swimmers and could kill Cumbria’s wildlife.
Campaign group Save Windermere wants all discharges stopped and has accused United Utilities and the water regulator of negligence.
Environment Agency data last week revealed 8,787 hours of untreated sewage made its way intowindermere in 2023 – a nearly 50 per cent increase on 2022.
Climate change, septic tanks and farmland run-off also damagedwindermere last year but sewage discharge was the most significant contributor, campaigners found.
They also believe stopping sewage discharges is possible, as Lake Annecy in France has been transformed since the 1960s to become Europe’s cleanest lake. It comes after it was
revealed that total river sewage spills for England more than doubled to 3.6 million hours of discharges last year.
Former Undertones singer Feargal Sharkey said: “England’s largest lake, a globally recognised tourist centre and one of the most heavily protected sites in the whole of Western Europe, has simply become an extension of United Utilities’ sewage system. During the summer, the lake basically turns green from algae being fed on the nutrients and raw sewage being dumped in it.”
He added: “What United Utilities has learnt is that it can pollute with impunity simply because the regulator has proved itself to be impotent. The privatisation of water companies has become nothing more than a legalised rip-off. If I was 20 years old right now, I would be seething, riddled with righteous anger, looking
at lakes and rivers in France and at the devastation we have caused here.”
Ecologist Matt Staniek, of Save Windermere, said: “Even here at Windermere we are not free from the exploitation of the water industry. If it’s happening to England’s largest natural lake, then it is certain to be happening to your local river.”
Mark Garth, United Utilities’ waste water services director, said: “Since 2015, we have invested £45million upgrading wastewater systems around Windermere, resulting in a 50 per cent reduction in phosphorus entering from our systems.
“We have already made an early start on a further £41million drive to reduce storm overflow by 50 per cent by 2030.”
The Environment Agency said it was bolstering the way it regulates the sector.
‘They can pollute it with impunity’