The UK’s environment watchdog has found that the government and regulators have broken the law by being too lenient on water companies that discharge sewage.
The Office for Environmental Protection (OEP) said that sewage discharges should only be permitted in exceptional circumstances, such as during unusually heavy rainfall, but “this is not always the case”.
He acknowledged that the regulator of Watts has now taken steps to change the way the law is enforced. The Government and the Environment Agency are “considering the allegations” carefully but failure to accept them could result in legal action.
Campaigners welcomed the results but described it as a “bittersweet moment”.
Public anger over the level of sewage discharge has grown in recent years. 2023 was found to double.
“OEP’s findings represent another devastating verdict on the utter failure of environmental regulation in our country,” said RiverAction Chair and Founder Charles Watson. “It is nothing short of scandalous.”
Sewers are sometimes required to be released during rainfall to prevent sewage from pooling in the system and backing up into people’s homes.
But two years ago wildlife charity WildFish complained to the OEP that the Conservative government, and regulators – Ofwat and the Environment Agency (EA) – were allowing excessive releases. He argued that the law requires sewage to be released only in “exceptional circumstances,” such as unusually heavy rain, rather than during any wet season.
Untreated sewage contains chemicals that can be harmful to aquatic life and can lead to algae build-ups that deprive local wildlife of oxygen and produce toxins that Potentially fatal to pets and dangerous to people.
And the less rainfall there is to dilute sewage, the more damaging it can be.
Nick Measham, CEO of Wildfish, told the BBC after the announcement: “We’re absolutely delighted and relieved. It really means we can put an end to this sewage problem in rivers.
“But it’s a bittersweet moment. It’s disappointing when the government and the regulators don’t actually do their job the way you hope.”
The OEP acknowledges that Ofwat has now taken steps to change the way the law is enforced, and August of Watt announced record fines to three water companies..
But the government’s Department of the Environment, Defra, and the Environment Agency are currently consulting on any changes, and have said they will “carefully consider” the OEP’s allegations.
A Defra spokesman said: “For far too long, water companies have pumped record levels of sewage into our rivers, lakes and seas. In just five months, this government has drastically exceeded our expectations of storm runoff. Worked decisively to update old guidance to clarify.”
Defra also announced on Tuesday that customers would be double-compensated for service failures such as water outages and pollution.
If Defra and the EA decide to accept the finding in full – which they should do by March – it could result in thousands of environmental permits being changed.
A question will also be whether the water companies’ new five-year investment plans – to be announced on Thursday – will be enough to upgrade infrastructure to meet those needs.
A spokesperson for industry body WaterUK told the BBC: “While regulators argue among themselves about what they think the rules are, water companies plan to provide the world’s largest program ever to eliminate sewage entering rivers. are
“We are waiting for Afwat’s decision on Thursday and hope that they will give us the green light so that we can go ahead with it.”
However, if there is a dispute over what the OEP has found, it has said it can apply to the High Court for an urgent judicial review.