Upcoming increases to water bills will not do enough to stop sewage spills in National Parks, campaigners have warned.
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.
Campaigners argue iconic sites like Lake Windermere should be prioritised as part of the clean-up of England’s waterways, which will be funded by increases to customer bills announced on Thursday.
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.
CNP has submitted a complaint to the Office for Environmental Protection, which monitors public bodies’ compliance with environmental laws.
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.
Many lakes and rivers in National Parks are being badly damaged by sewage spills, and CNP argues not enough is being done to rectify the situation despite the water bill rises being imposed on customers.
The Lake District’s Lake Windermere has become a symbol for the devastating impact sewage pollution is having on National Parks.
Untreated sewage is discharged into the lake for thousands of hours each year, contributing to toxic algal blooms in the water that are dangerous for humans and wildlife. Agricultural pollution and urban runoff are also factors.
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.
United Utilities are proposing to invest almost £200m over the next five years around Windermere if its business plans are approved by Ofwat, which it said will significantly reduce sewage spills into the lake.
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.
United Utilities carried out a feasibility study that found such a project would cost in the region of £3-6bn and take up to 15 years to complete. They said this would not be possible within the current funding and regulatory framework.
Campaigners like Staniek argue Ofwat should have the ambition to take on such projects.
“They’re not truly assessing how significant a place like Windermere is and how the solution we’re putting forward fits in so definitely with what a National Park should be; that preservation of natural beauty and making the improvements to protect these places for the nation forever,” he said.
“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.”
Ofwat will reveal on Thursday how much water companies are allowed to increase water bills by over the next five years so they can invest in their infrastructure to reduce sewage spills.
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.
In a draft decision published earlier this year, Ofwat preliminarily approved lower bill rises that it said will allow water companies to invest £88bn over the next five years, but is widely expected to approve larger increases as part of its final decision.
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.
But CNP argues that the regulator has ignored its legal duty to National Parks, which was introduced last year as part of the Levelling Up and Regeneration Act.
'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.
Under Freedom of Information laws, CNP asked Ofwat for all documentation relating to how Ofwat has interpreted and implemented its new legal duties.
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.
Dr Rose O’Neill, chief executive of CNP, accused Ofwat of “turning a willful blind eye” to its duties to improve National Parks.
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.
The i Paper also revealed that water companies were dumping sewage from nearly 900 secret locations in National Parks, the majority of which were not being monitored by the Environment Agency.
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.
They argue many sewage treatment works in National Parks are not up to scratch to deal with the increased pressure put on them during tourism season.
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.
A United Utilities spokesperson, said: “Since 2010, we have invested £75m upgrading the wastewater treatment works, pumping stations and sewers around Windermere.
“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.”
Read More Details
Finally We wish PressBee provided you with enough information of ( Water bill hikes won’t stop sewage dumping in National Parks, campaigners say )
Also on site :
- Final Palisades fire evacuation order lifted
- 'Unprecedented' number of US Air Force aerial refueling tankers heading toward Europe
- A hillside of white crosses fuels a misleading story about South Africa’s farm killings