Further action on sewage overflows has been taken by the Environment Agency in England and Wales to ensure they pose a minimal risk to the quality of rivers and seas
New measures to ensure rivers and coastal waters are protected
The Environment Agency announced it has taken further action on sewage overflows in England and Wales to ensure they pose a minimal risk to the quality of rivers and seas. It is the conclusion of a 20-year comprehensive programme by the organisation to reduce the pollution risks posed by sewage overflows.
The Environment Agency has worked with water and sewage companies to prioritise the most polluting overflows in a £2.5bn investment programme since the water industry was privatised in 1989. By the end of 2008, around 6,000 of the highest risk overflows had been rebuilt, improved or eliminated, resulting in major improvements to water quality in rivers and around the coastlines in England and Wales.
The remaining 4,193 overflows had been identified as posing a low risk to the environment. Their potential to cause pollution is low or they are only used in extreme circumstances. The Environment Agency has now set legal standards for them to provide additional protection for rivers and coastal waters.
Sewage overflows have historically played an important role in the sewerage system. They allow excess water and sewage to release into the sea or rivers during extreme weather such as heavy rain or flooding. This has prevented it from backing up into streets and homes.
Water quality in rivers and bathing waters around England and Wales has been steadily improving over the past 20 years. For example, 76 per cent of English rivers are of 'very good' or 'good' quality, up from 55 per cent in 1990. Bathing water standards have also increased from 32 per cent in 1990 to 70 per cent last year. The work the Environment Agency has required water and sewerage companies to carry out to reduce the impact of sewer overflows has made a significant contribution to these improvements.
Paul Leinster, Chief Executive at the Environment Agency said:
“We want the cleanest possible rivers and seas. To achieve this, the amount of pollution going into them needs to reduce. We’ve been working with the water and sewerage companies to identify the highest sources of pollution from sewage overflows and together have acted to tackle them.
“By also bringing the lower risk overflows under stricter regulation, we’re ensuring the quality of rivers and coastal waters continues to be protected and improved. Water and sewerage companies now have a legal duty to monitor and maintain the overflows so that there are no serious pollution incidents. We will enforce this wherever necessary.
“Water utilities have a big responsibility in helping to maintain and improve inland and coastal waters. The programme of river and habitat protection the Environment Agency oversees will mean that rivers and coastal waters are protected for people, wildlife and the environment.”
Thomas Bell, at the Marine Conservation Society, said: “Together with the Blueprint for Water partners we have been pushing hard for these sewage overflows to be reviewed and formally licensed. It’s great news that the Environment Agency has now done so. Legal standards for pollution along the coast and rivers have gone up. The public expects better protection for itself and the environment, and tighter control of sewage overflow discharges will be vital in achieving this.”
ENDS
Notes for editors
The water quality data figures for rivers and bathing waters uses the General Quality Assessment classification scheme, which is designed to provide an accurate and consistent assessment of the state of water quality and how it changes over time. Under the EU Water Framework Directive, water quality will be assessed in future using a new, tougher methodology.
Case studies of improved sewage overflows
The River Don, Yorkshire
As with many rivers in the UK, the industrial revolution had a devastating impact in the River Don, turning it from a sparkling, fish filled river into a lifeless channel of effluent. By the 1900s outfalls of raw or sparsely-treated sewage and discharges from the many factories, steelworks and foundries along its path turned it into one of the most polluted rivers in Europe.
Over the last 25 years the Environment Agency has worked with Yorkshire Water to transform the river back to good health. As well as major improvements at Blackburn Meadows sewage treatment works, where a new plant replaced the inefficient works and vastly improved its discharges to the Don, improvements were also made to over 300 sewage overflows, including at Porter Brook and the River Sheaf.
Diverse aquatic life is now flourishing once again, and salmon – which are extremely good indicators of water quality – have recently returned to lower parts of the Don. Local people and visitors alike are enjoying the leisure and recreational opportunities now offered throughout the Don admiring the clear waters and their diverse surroundings.
Charlestown, Cornwall
Charlestown is a 'must see' destination for thousands of tourists who visit Cornwall every year. It's an unspoilt Georgian Port and home to Porthpean – a large sandy beach which is a favourite with families.
In the late 1980s and early 1990s this and several other beaches repeatedly failed bathing water quality tests. Investigations at the time found that crude discharges of sewage from overflows were the major contributing factor.
A programme of work to improve bathing water quality by tackling the sewage overflows began in the 1990s and as a direct result, a new sewage treatment plant to deal with waste from across the area was constructed in 1993. At the same time, major work was carried out on sewers in the area. A new tunnel sewer was constructed, which connected up to the new treatment works and made it possible for some older sewage overflows to be shut down.
Since then, sewage treatment plants in the area have continued to be improved and updated. As a result of this work, all beaches in the area passed the mandatory bathing water standard last year.
Further case studies are available on request from the Press Office.
