Water and sewage companies in England have today apologised for not acting quickly enough on sewage spills.
To put things right, the industry plans to make the largest ever investment in storm overflows as part of a major programme to reduce spills into rivers and seas.
In addition, a new national environmental hub with information on all 15,000 overflows in the country will increase transparency and allow the public to hold companies to account.
Water companies across the country plan to install the equivalent of thousands of new Olympic swimming pools to hold surges in rainwater that would otherwise overload the system
They will increase the capacity of sewage treatment works, allowing them to treat higher volumes of rainfall and sewage and replace concrete with grass and ponds to reduce rainfall run-off entering sewers, protecting them against the overloading that causes spills
They aim to treat overflow spills so they have much less impact on the river, including through reed beds, wetlands and other nature-friendly projects and
Improve the sewer network by enlarging and improving pipes, allowing them to safely carry more sewage during peak times, and fixing misconnected pipes from properties.
Ruth Kelly, Chair of Water UK, said:
“The message from the water and sewage industry today is clear: we are sorry. More should have been done to address the issue of spillages sooner and the public is right to be upset about the current quality of our rivers and beaches. We have listened and have an unprecedented plan to start to put it right. This problem cannot be fixed overnight, but we are determined to do everything we can to transform our rivers and seas in the way we all want to see.”
