Sewage being discharged into a brook from a nearby treatment works run by Thames Water in April 2023 after heavy rainfall.Sewage being discharged into a brook from a nearby treatment works run by Thames Water in April 2023 after heavy rainfall.
One senior executive told the Guardian: “We have wasted 15 years, we have not been investing enough.” Severn Trent discharged raw sewage into waterways for 440,446 hours, South West Water for 530,737 hours, an 82.5% increase, Southern Water for 317,285, a 116% rise, and United Utilities for 656,014 hours, a 54% increase.
The record sewage discharges were revealed as a major investigation into illegal sewage dumping by the regulator, Ofwat, into more than 2,000 treatment plants was nearing its conclusion. The Environment Agency is running a parallel criminal inquiry into illegal sewage dumping by companies.