Poor water quality and sewage at Deal's beach cause concerns
Jamie Pout, leader of the Independent Group at Dover District Council, said he had written to both the environment secretary, Steve Reed, and MP for Dover and Deal, Mike Tapp, calling for urgent action.The latest reading was taken on the 7 July which recorded 9,900 colonies per 100ml of water, compared to the highest reading in 2024 which was 3,900 colonies per 100ml.Mr Pout said: "Why are things getting worse? Whoever took that reading must have been forced to wade through actual human waste. This new reading is maddening."Speaking about the impact to the local economy, he added: "Local shops, pubs, restaurants need answers to why sewage is being dumped in the sea."
A spokesperson for the Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs said: "The government has put down the building blocks to clean up our rivers, lakes and seas. "Ofwat, the failed water regulator will be abolished, and we will establish a new, single, powerful regulator to clean up our waterways for good."Sarah Waite from Save our Seas Deal and Walmer said: "Our hopes of things getting better have been dashed by this new data." The local campaign group added they were working to set up a "day of action" in the town following recent data on water quality.
'Deal a no-go town'
Mr Barkaway added the Boxing Day Dip had to be cancelled last year due to poor water quality. "So many local community and businesses benefit from the event, so to have to cancel it again would effectively brand Deal as a no-go holiday town."A Southern Water spokesperson said there were "many contributing factors" impacting water quality. "This includes industrial, agricultural and highway run-off, and it is vital all partners come together to protect the environment," they added."In Kent, our teams continue to work with partners including the Environment Agency, Kent County Council and Dover District Council to understand the issues affecting water quality and to find and fix problems as quickly as possible."
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BBC News
3 days ago
- BBC News
Poor water quality and sewage at Deal's beach cause concerns
An reading for bathing water in a Kent coastal town has led a charity to warn that a "miracle" is needed to hold its Boxing Day Dip this Rotary Club president Edward Barkway told the BBC the new recording taken this month at Deal Castle was 2.5 half times higher than last year's Barkway said this was a "death blow" for their event, which would normally raise about £10,000 for local charities. Southern Water said it was "working hard to play their part in protecting and enhancing water quality". Jamie Pout, leader of the Independent Group at Dover District Council, said he had written to both the environment secretary, Steve Reed, and MP for Dover and Deal, Mike Tapp, calling for urgent latest reading was taken on the 7 July which recorded 9,900 colonies per 100ml of water, compared to the highest reading in 2024 which was 3,900 colonies per Pout said: "Why are things getting worse? Whoever took that reading must have been forced to wade through actual human waste. This new reading is maddening."Speaking about the impact to the local economy, he added: "Local shops, pubs, restaurants need answers to why sewage is being dumped in the sea." A spokesperson for the Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs said: "The government has put down the building blocks to clean up our rivers, lakes and seas. "Ofwat, the failed water regulator will be abolished, and we will establish a new, single, powerful regulator to clean up our waterways for good."Sarah Waite from Save our Seas Deal and Walmer said: "Our hopes of things getting better have been dashed by this new data." The local campaign group added they were working to set up a "day of action" in the town following recent data on water quality. 'Deal a no-go town' Mr Barkaway added the Boxing Day Dip had to be cancelled last year due to poor water quality. "So many local community and businesses benefit from the event, so to have to cancel it again would effectively brand Deal as a no-go holiday town."A Southern Water spokesperson said there were "many contributing factors" impacting water quality. "This includes industrial, agricultural and highway run-off, and it is vital all partners come together to protect the environment," they added."In Kent, our teams continue to work with partners including the Environment Agency, Kent County Council and Dover District Council to understand the issues affecting water quality and to find and fix problems as quickly as possible."
The Independent
5 days ago
- The Independent
No households fined for breaking hosepipe bans during recent droughts, water firms admit
Major water companies in England have not issued a single fine to residents for breaking hosepipe bans over the last five years, The Independent can reveal. Southern Water, Yorkshire Water, Thames Water and South West Water have confirmed they did not issue any fines, which can be as high as £1,000, despite having the legal power to do so for more than a decade. All four companies have introduced hosepipe bans at different times since 2020, including the heatwaves of 2022 and 2023, which left millions under restrictions. This year, Yorkshire Water, South East Water, and Southern Water have all imposed bans to curb non-essential use as England battles exceptionally dry weather. Under current rules, householders who breach a ban can be fined up to £1,000 if prosecuted, and companies also have powers to issue £100 fixed penalty notices. Despite high-profile campaigns urging households to save water, enforcement has relied entirely on public goodwill rather than financial penalties. Campaigners have told The Independent that leaking pipes, poor planning and inaction by water companies pose a far greater threat to supplies than people watering their gardens. James Wallace, CEO of campaign group River Action, said it was wrong to focus on 'threatening customers with £1,000 fines for watering their gardens' when water companies themselves spill billions of litres every day and face few consequences. 'Voluntary measures and public awareness aren't enough,' he warned, calling for 'real enforcement, aimed at water companies, and bold structural reform' to tackle worsening drought risks. 'No new reservoirs have been built in over 30 years, despite clear climate warnings about worsening droughts,' Mr Wallace added. Paul de Zylva, sustainability analyst at Friends of the Earth, said that hosepipe bans are a 'sticking plaster solution to a problem that is only going to get worse'. 'Recent heatwaves only add to drought conditions, making it harder for everyone – not least hospitals, care homes, farmers and transport operators – to cope,' he added. It comes as the government announced plans to scrap the regulator Ofwat in an overhaul of regulation for the troubled water sector. The final report from the Independent Water Commission, led by Sir Jon Cunliffe, made 88 recommendations to the UK and Welsh governments aimed at turning around the industry, which has faced public fury over pollution, soaring bills, shareholder payouts and executive bonuses. The number of serious pollution incidents caused by water firms across England also rose by 60 per cent in 2024 compared with the previous year, the Environment Agency said. Three water firms were responsible for 81 per cent of these serious incidents – Thames Water with 33, Southern Water with 15, and Yorkshire Water with 13. It attributed the rise in incidents last year to persistent underinvestment in new infrastructure, poor asset maintenance, and reduced resilience because of the impacts of climate change. Southern Water said that during its 2022 hosepipe ban, most customers complied voluntarily. The company said it focused on explaining the reasons for the ban and encouraging people to comply, viewing enforcement as the 'very last step'. Yorkshire Water also confirmed no fines had been issued. A spokesperson said: 'Whilst we do have the power to enforce the restrictions and have a process to deal with those breaching it, we would prefer not to have to use this and would hope customers would work with us and respect the restrictions, recognising it's been put in place to protect essential supplies. The response so far has been brilliant, and we've seen demand coming down.' South West Water and Thames Water both confirmed they did not fine customers for breaching restrictions. Nicci Russell, chief executive of water efficiency charity Waterwise, said: 'At Waterwise we are clear that the UK is running out of water, and that this will affect every aspect of our lives.' She added that even if water companies fixed all their leaks, 'there would still be a big gap between the water we have and the water we need.' Ms Russell said hosepipe bans remain a legitimate tool to manage demand but argued the most effective solution is for everyone to 'waste less water, now,' alongside considering whether ministers should introduce stronger legal powers over time. Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) officials said hosepipe bans typically reduce water use by around three to five per cent, helping supplies last longer and protecting the environment. Defra encourages households to take steps to save water, such as fixing leaky toilets, installing water butts and reusing leftover water for plants.
The Independent
18-07-2025
- The Independent
Our failing water firms are a damning reflection of Broken Britain
The latest report from the Environment Agency on the state of Britain's rivers is a veritable shower of euphemism and shame. 'Serious pollution incidents', the bland bureaucratic term preferred by the agency, are up by 60 per cent just in the last year. We all know what that means: lumpy sewage in streams and on seashores that turns the stomach of anyone nearby, asphyxiates fish, and generally decimates the environment. 'Wastewater' leaking out while being carried uphill is apparently a particular problem, one 'impacting' swimmers. Around 80 per cent of the most serious 'incidents' were down to three companies – Thames Water (33 spillages), Southern Water (15) and Yorkshire Water (13). There is no suggestion that the situation is likely to improve; indeed, all the talk is of Thames Water, the largest company of its kind in the country, collapsing under the weight of its own debt rather than its scandalous record on pollution. It's a damning reflection of 'Broken Britain'. Why has a supposedly civilised G7 economy grown so easily accustomed to such an appalling state of affairs? It may be true that de-industrialisation has cleaned up some of the larger rivers and estuaries in recent decades, but the water companies, the regulators and successive governments can hardly take credit for that. What they are responsible for is what is in their control – maintaining a sewage system that does what it is expected of it in the modern world. It is one of the most basic services – and yet in parts of the UK, it feels little more than a hopeless aspiration. This river of excrement has been rolling for years, and, while the details can be complex, the principal streams of blame that feed into the scandal can be easily identified. Incomprehensibly weak regulation is the strongest of the currents, either because Ofwat was never given sufficient powers or a wide enough remit, or because it was incompetent, or all three. There has never been a shortage of official bodies nominally overseeing matters – the Environment Agency and various iterations of the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, as well as local authorities – but always a huge deficit of effective democratic control. There is, of course, a fundamental contradiction at the heart of this particular privatised industry: the provision of clean running water and efficient sewage disposal may not align with the commercial imperatives of the companies denationalised in 1989 in England and Wales (Scotland and Northern Ireland were spared the experiment). Profit and public service can co-exist and even flourish – but not always, and not everywhere. Even if the industry had been regulated better, the privatised model combined with zero competition and regulated tariffs was poorly prepared for the task of investing the vast sums needed to renew the crumbling Victorian infrastructure, let alone build the reservoirs and pipework required to cater for a population that was to expand by some 12 million in the ensuing decades. Some public services ought not to be expected, let alone forced, to turn a profit. But from early on, the major weakness in the regulatory regime was becoming apparent – that while the need to monitor charges and water quality was recognised, there was no oversight of the financial health of the companies. Once the shares had been acquired from the small shareholders in the initial public offerings and placed in the hands of private equity firms, the companies were free to load themselves with as much debt as they fancied – which paid for bumper dividends for the new shareholders. It left a vital public service hopelessly over-mortgaged. The chance was taken for some lucrative asset stripping, even certain reservoirs were sold off, and the companies were left so enfeebled that if Ofwat tried to fine them, they could plausibly claim that they would go bust. They contrived to make themselves too big to fail. Or so they hoped. On Monday, the government will publish a review of the industry by Sir Jon Cunliffe, the head of the Independent Water Commission, and its own proposals will follow. As we reported on Friday, the government is expected to scrap Ofwat. It must use the power of parliament to chart a new course for the industry. Despite the pollution crisis, the Treasury cannot afford immediately to renationalise the most distressed of the operators, Thames Water, because of its enormous debts – more than £16bn. It seems inevitable that Thames will fall into the special procedure that will ensure continuing water and sewage services to 15 million customers in southern England and London while the government takes control. This is a far cheaper remedy for the taxpayer, but it does still mean that the considerable cost of cleaning up the rivers, keeping the taps on and the loos flushing will, to some extent, fall to the taxpayers as well as the bill payers. Either that, or we just get used to having the dirtiest rivers and beaches in Europe.
