Sewage spill data a ‘disgrace’

New sewage data shows small drop in the number of sewage spills in 2024, but duration has increased
Katie Hill - Editor-in-Chief, My Green Pod
Effluent from a large pipe flowing to the sea

The Environment Secretary has described the number of spills from storm overflows as ‘disgraceful’ following the release of new figures yesterday (27 March). 

The figures show a slight drop in the total number of spills compared with 2023 – but the total duration of spills has increased, with 3,614,428 hours recorded across the year.

Negligence ‘laid bare’

The government is prioritising water infrastructure upgrades, with £104 billion of private-sector investment secured for the next five years.

This will be invested into the water sector and will mean spills are cut by 45% by 2030 from 2021 levels, according to Ofwat.

The government has also commissioned a full review into the sector ‘to deliver lasting reforms that will clean up our waterways for good’.

‘The full scale of the water companies’ negligence is laid bare in these figures. We now know where sewage they were supposed to treat is going, and we know where the budget to treat that sewage went – into the pockets of shareholders. So long as that money, coming off householders rising bills, keeps getting diverted down the wrong pipe, so will the sewage.’

DR DOUG PARR
Policy director for Greenpeace UK

Water (Special Measures) Act

To help reduce the frequency and duration of storm overflow spills, Defra recently published new storm overflow guidance for water companies and regulators.

This guidance directs investment toward the most environmentally sensitive sites to better protect nature.  

Under this new government guidance, agreed as part of the price review process (PR24), improvements are being prioritised to focus water company investment on better wastewater management and enhancing bathing water quality nationwide. 

This follows the Water (Special Measures) Act passing into law last month, which gives regulators stronger powers to crack down on polluting water companies.

It allows faster penalties, bans bonuses for failing executives, and introduces independent monitoring of every sewage outlet. Water companies must now publish real-time data on emergency overflows, with spills reported within an hour of the initial event. 

‘These figures are disgraceful and are a stark reminder of how years of underinvestment have led to water companies discharging unacceptable levels of sewage into our rivers, lakes, and seas. 

‘We’ve already placed water companies under tough special measures through the landmark Water Act, banning unfair bonuses for polluting water bosses and introducing criminal charges for lawbreakers. 

‘But we will go further and faster. That’s why this government has secured over £100 billion of private sector investment to upgrade our crumbling infrastructure and not only clean up our rivers, lakes and seas for good, but also help deliver economic growth across the country as part of our Plan for Change.’

STEVE REED
Environment Secretary

Resetting the system

The £104 billion investment will be rolled out over the next five years, marking the largest upgrade to water infrastructure since privatisation.

The money will support 150 major infrastructure projects – creating over 30,000 jobs across the country, supporting the building of 1.5 million new homes and powering new industries such as gigafactories and data centres. 

The Independent Water Commission, launched by the government last year and led by Sir Jon Cunliffe, will recommend long-term reforms to reset the water sector regulatory system. The goal is to help the government to ‘establish a resilient and innovative water sector and a robust regulatory framework’.

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