News shared by Alex on behalf of Surfers Against Sewage, in their own words. Ed
UK water companies could be guilty of illegal activity according to a new report released by campaign group Surfers Against Sewage (SAS) today (Thursday).
Analysis of sewage discharge alerts and meteorological data[1] shows that discharges occurred in multiple instances when there was no rain recorded – at least 146 times at a conservative estimate – despite regulations stipulating that outflows should only occur during ‘unusually heavy rainfall’.
Isle of Wight has top seven of ten
Southern Water was responsible for four times as many ‘dry spills’ as the next worst offender, South West Water, and the Isle of Wight has seven locations ranking in the top ten for ‘dry spills’.
| Rank | Location | Water Company | Bathing Water Classification | Number Of Dry Spills |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Cowes | Southern Water | Excellent | 7 |
| 2 | Felpham | Southern Water | Good | 7 |
| 3 | Teignmouth Holcombe | South West Water | Excellent | 5 |
| 4 | Gurnard | Southern Water | Good | 5 |
| 5 | Southend Three Shells | Anglian Water | Excellent | 4 |
| 6 | Par Sands | South West Water | Sufficient | 4 |
| 7 | Bembridge | Southern Water | Excellent | 4 |
| 8 | Pagham | Southern Water | Excellent | 4 |
| 9 | Sandown | Southern Water | Excellent | 4 |
| 10 | Seagrove | Southern Water | Excellent | 4 |
Between October 2021 and September 2022, SAS issued 9,216 sewage pollution alerts via its Safer Seas and Rivers Service (SSRS), which covers over 450 beach and river spots across the UK, and is designed to help the public make informed decisions about where and when they swim, surf or paddle. A quarter (2,053) of these alerts were during the 2022 bathing season.
Slack: The government is complicit in the sewage scandal
Amy Slack, Head of Campaigns and Policy at SAS, said,
“Over the last year, the UK public has made clear their disgust at what’s happening to our rivers and seas, and yet water companies continue to pollute at will. It’s especially alarming to uncover evidence of potentially illegal activity by water companies in the form of ‘dry spills’, which are not permitted under current regulations. Shareholders and CEOs are unashamedly profiteering off pollution.
“Surfers Against Sewage has been campaigning on water quality for the last three decades, making it abundantly clear to water companies that their actions are detrimental to both environmental and public health. Yet water companies are still choosing to pour sewage into the ocean and rivers across the country, make us quite literally sick of sewage.
“The government is complicit in the sewage scandal, failing to enforce and strengthen regulations to protect the health of the UK’s waterways – and the health of its citizens. Politicians are simply kicking the can down the road, legitimising sewage pollution for the next 27 years through the sewage action plan published this summer.
“It’s high time the government stepped up and took real action to curb the destructive and selfish behaviour of the water companies responsible for this literal shitstorm.”
Analysed data from 720 sickness reports
As part of its water quality report, SAS has also analysed data from 720 sickness reports submitted via the SSRS.
The data revealed that over a third (39 per cent) of sickness cases correlated to sewage discharge alerts, whilst 63 per cent of cases that were reported to a doctor were attributed to poor water quality.
Findings make a mockery of the categorisation system
SAS’s findings make a mockery of the categorisation system for designated bathing waters in the UK. Over half (55 per cent) of the sickness reports submitted related to instances of swimming at locations classified as ‘excellent’ under the current testing regime.
Similarly, of the 146 ‘dry spills’ recorded, 95 were at locations classified as ‘excellent’.
Proof of detrimental effect of sewage scandal
SAS’s sickness data is proof of the detrimental effect that the sewage scandal is having on our health. The most common illness reported from people who got sick after swimming in rivers or the sea was gastroenteritis, with 2 in 3 people reporting symptoms associated with the condition.
Ear, nose and throat infections were common too, with respiratory, skin and urinary tract infections also reported.
Leonard: Antibiotic resistant bacteria
Dr Anne Leonard, an environmental epidemiologist and microbiologist based at the University of Exeter, said,
“We’ve known for over one hundred years that sewage contains disease-causing microorganisms, and that ingesting water contaminated with this kind of waste causes infections. These infections may be mild, self-limiting illnesses but they can also be really severe infections that require medical treatment.
“We are particularly concerned about the presence in sewage of disease-causing bacteria that do not respond to treatment with antibiotics – so called antibiotic resistant bacteria. We are running out of antibiotics that are effective against the most resistant bacteria, so keeping sewage away from our rivers and beaches is a key public health intervention to reduce preventable infections and limit our reliance on antibiotics.”
Also affecting mental health
The sewage scandal is also affecting mental health, with members of the public eschewing spending time in rivers and the sea after experiencing sickness – despite finding activities such as swimming, surfing and paddleboarding beneficial to their mental wellbeing.
Walker: Unwell for six days after swimming in contaminated water
Julia Walker, a social worker based in Shoreham, West Sussex, said,
“I use the sea to help manage stress from my job as a social worker. In September I went for a swim in a popular spot prior to starting a new job. That evening I experienced diarrhoea and stabbing pain in my kidneys. The doctor confirmed I had a bacterial and a kidney infection. They felt that it was very unusual to have both at the same time but said that this was likely caused by swimming in contaminated water.
“I was unwell for six days, which impacted on my new role. It took me a couple of months to get back in the sea, and now I only swim with my head above water for fear of becoming ill again. It makes me very angry that the water companies are affecting how I use the water.”
Ssix key demands
With the release of its annual report, SAS is reiterating six key demands to end sewage discharge into bathing waters by 2030, which are as follows:
- An enhanced water-quality testing regime.
- The establishment of 200 designated inland bathing waters.
- World-leading water quality legislation with ambitious legally binding targets and well-funded regulators.
- To end untreated sewage discharge in all bathing waters and to reduce all untreated sewage discharges by 90 per cent.
- Nature-based solutions to sewage pollution.
- Investment from water companies and other systemic polluters. We need water companies to invest urgently in their sewage infrastructure and end the use of sewage overflows.
Government continues to drag its heels
Despite public outcry at the volume of sewage being released by water companies into our rivers and onto our beaches, the government has continued to drag its heels on bringing water companies into line.
Reductions in regulator funding of over 50 per cent over the last decade, combined with the stripping of red tape to allow water companies to self-report on their pollution, has left the UK’s rivers and seascapes in dire straits.
Recording losses but paying millions in dividends
Meanwhile, despite nearly every water company recording a loss for the year ending 31st March 2022, the majority still paid out dividends to shareholders totalling £965 million, whilst paying a cumulative total of £16.5 million to their CEOs.
According to data from the Environment Agency, sewage has been dumped into the ocean and rivers around the UK more than 770,000 times over the course of 2020 and 2021 – the equivalent of almost 6 million hours.
In response to the report, a Southern Water spokesperson said,
“Storm releases, which go a long way to reduce the impact of the type of flooding we have seen recently, and which are permitted by the Environmental Agency, reduced by nearly 50% this year compared to last, in part due to a dry summer. We’re investing £2bn to improve environmental performance and further reduce their use, by increasing storage capacity and working with partners to reduce the rain run-off entering the system.
“Our data on storm overflows, including unconsented spills, is submitted to the Environment Agency. Our annual bathing water update details how we are working to create healthier rivers and seas. This improvement is being achieved through record additional investment to reduce pollution and prevent flooding, industry-leading monitoring and transparency on spill reporting, and the exploration of innovative, nature-based and engineering solutions.”
Article edit
7.30am 24th Nov 2022 – Comment from SW added
3.30pm 24th Nov 2022 – Table updated with top ten (rather than top five)
[1] Data provided by the Met Office
