Government and water industry taskforce vows to establish a long-term goal to eliminate harm from discharges of sewage that occur during and after periods of heavy rainfall
Water companies have agreed to be more transparent about releases of sewage into rivers and inland waterways during and after periods of heavy rainfall, the government announced today.
The Storms Overflows Taskforce, a joint water industry and government group set up last August, confirmed this morning it had agreed to set a long-term goal to end pollution from such discharges and secured a commitment from water firms to provide more frequent data on the issue.
In a major win for surfers and swimmers, water companies have agreed to publish annual monitoring data on their websites about their use of storm overflows, so that progress in reducing their reliance on the environmentally harmful practice is tracked, the taskforce announced. The Environment Agency will compile the new data into an annual report that will be easily accessible to the public, according to the update.
The group, which includes the Department of Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra), the Environment Agency, Ofwat, the Consumer Council for Water, Water UK, and Blueprint for Water, confirmed water companies have also committed to making real-time data on sewage discharges available at dedicated bathing sites all year round, while accelerating the roll-out of monitoring devices to ensure a complete picture of their activity by 2023.
'Storm overflows' have historically been used during bouts of heavy rainfall to prevent sewers from being inundated with a combination of sewage and rainwater. However, with historic sewage infrastructure not designed to cater to the more frequent and intense downpours caused by climate change, sewage overspills are becoming increasingly frequent, spreading harmful bacteria across waterways, and causing major damage to ecosystems.
In a statement, Environment Minister Rebecca Pow said she recognised the water sector's "reliance on storm overflows" needed to be reduced.
"Making sure we have clean rivers is an absolute priority and I have been clear that I want to cut down on the water sector's reliance on storm overflows," she said. "The Storm Overflows Taskforce, established last year, is working urgently on options to tackle this issue, which demonstrates a collective commitment for change in this critical area."
Christine McGouty, chief executive of trade group Water UK, emphasised the sector was committed to protecting the nation's rivers. However, she also highlighted that storm overflows were an important tool during times of extreme weather.
"Water companies are passionate about protecting and enhancing our nation's rivers, and over the next five years we will invest £1.1bn in improving storm overflows as part of our £5bn environment programme," she said. "Storm Christoph demonstrates how important overflows are in ensuring that sewers don't flood at times of very heavy rainfall. Today's announcement will help ensure that we can continue protecting people's homes and businesses whatever the weather."
The taskforce comes as a Private Member's Bill that would ban water companies from discharging untreated sewage into rivers suffered its fifth round of pandemic-related delays last week, after garnering widespread cross-party support.
More than 106 MPs have come out in support of the Sewage (Inland Waters) Bill introduced by Phillip Dunne, the Conservative chair of the Environmental Audit Committe, which was due to have its second reading last week before it was deferred due to coronavirus restrictions.
The government said today it planned to work with Dunne on tackling sewage pollution in rivers, noting that his Bill had "raised awareness on a number of issues associated with storm overflows".
In response, Dunne said he was "really pleased" the government had agreed to work with him and had committed to develop measures to improve water quality across England.
"I have been shocked to discover the extent of sewage routinely spilled in our rivers," he said. "Poor water quality has a very damaging impact on aquatic species which depend on clean rivers, and risks healthy enjoyment of our rivers by the public."
Emma Howard Boyd, chair at the Environment Agency, said that improved disclosure regime announced by the Taskfore was only "the beginning", and urged water companies to take action to end overuse of storm overflows.
"Publishing easily accessible data is an important step to reversing the overuse of storm overflows, but disclosure is only ever the beginning," she said. "People want to see progress. Water quality in England's 240,631 kilometres of river is everyone's responsibility but water companies have a pivotal role in helping the whole country make the necessary big changes."
The new moves were also welcomed by Sam Hall of the Conservative Environment Network (CEN), but he stressed that it's critical the new goals are "now reflected by Ofwat in their next price review, so that upgrades to sewage systems can be financed".