A legal complaint has been lodged against Ofwat, accusing the water regulator of failing to follow new laws designed to protect wildlife and boost the natural beauty within National Parks.
Water companies have outlined multimillion pound plans to improve sewage treatment plans within National Parks, but the Campaign for National Parks (CNP) say this is not enough.
It argues that Ofwat is ignoring new legal duties brought in last year that state public bodies must “further the purpose” of National Parks in any decisions they make in connection with the protected landscapes.
The Lake District’s Lake Windermere has become a symbol for the devastating impact sewage pollution is having on National Parks.
Illegal sewage dumping by water firms allowed for years by regulators
Read More“Windermere is being used as a place to dump untreated sewage…we’re seeing blue green algal blooms in Windermere that threaten not only those that want to come and recreationally swim in Windermere and enjoy it, but it also threatens the ecology of Windermere,” said Matt Staniek, founder of the Save Windermere campaign group.
But Save Windermere are campaigning for an investment plan that would see an end to the dumping of both untreated and treated sewage into the lake entirely, modelled on a similar project that was introduced at Lake Annecy in France in the 1960s after the lake suffered from algal blooms. Lake Annecy is now known as one of the cleanest lakes in Europe.
Campaigners like Staniek argue Ofwat should have the ambition to take on such projects.
“If they put these duties as a priority then we would actually see real change and improvement to places like Windermere that are just being exploited as open sewers.”
Water companies have published plans that would see them almost double investment to over £100bn up to 2030, but have said this will involve increasing bills by around £150 per year, depending on the firm.
Ofwat must balance a variety of legal duties in making this decision, including ensuring that water companies’ business plans provide a reasonable return to investors.
'Thames Water sent me a £10k bill for a leaking pipe - I don't know where it is'
Read MoreWhile water companies are planning many upgrades to sewage treatment works within National Parks over the next five years, CNP argues there is no evidence that Ofwat is prioritisting this work.
In response, Ofwat only provided an email from officials in the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) in September this year asking for an urgent meeting to discuss whether Ofwat was aware of its new duties and how they would be applied to the regulators’ decisions over business plans.
In January, The i Paper reported that National Parks, including the New Forest and Lake District, were being blighted by the presence of sewage tankers that were regularly transporting waste from overwhelmed sewage treatment works.
Earlier this year, CNP published a National Parks Health Check, which revealed that 61 per cent of rivers and 85 per cent of lakes in National Parks did not achieve a “good” ecological status. They found sewage pollution was a significant factor in waterways failing to meet standards.
A spokesperson for Ofwat said the regulator has “taken account of our relevant legal duties including those with respect to the environment and protected landscapes” when making its final decision on business plans.
“Our proposed business plan includes an additional £200m investment to further improve treatment processes at sites across the catchment and reduce storm overflow operations at all six overflows to less than ten each year by 2030.”
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