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combined sewer overflows

Latest in combined sewer overflows

£250m water pollution fines ‘still on the table’
Government is still pursuing hefty fines of up to £250 million as a deterrent to polluters, Therese Coffey confirmed. The Defra secretary demanded detailed plans on how water and sewerage companies intend to address each combined sewer overflow in their region as the sector works to minimise the risk of harm from discharges.
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New environment secretary demands CSO action
On his first day in office the newly appointed environment secretary ordered water company chief executives to submit plans to make “significant improvements” to reduce sewage discharged into waterways within two weeks. Ranil Jayawardena said his message to sector heads had been that the current approach is "not good enough".
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Government mulls removing sewer connection right
Government is mulling removing developers automatic right to connect to sewer networks as part of its plan to minimise the risk of harm from combined sewer overflows (CSOs) that includes expectations for water companies to accelerate work at designated bathing sites and close to ecologically important locations.
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CSOs: Solutions for complex problems
Awareness and concern about storm overflows in inland waters and seas has gained considerable momentum, with everyone from activists and politicians to pop stars campaigning for uncontrolled discharges to cease. RSK Group’s strategic business development director, Mark Smith, examines the impact of storm overflows and asks, is it feasible to stop all discharges and, if so, what will it cost and who should pay? 
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Ofwat calls for demand management focus
Speaking at the first Utility Week Innovate Pollution Management, Mitigation and Risk conference this week, Ofwat's John Russell urged water companies to beef up demand management in their business plans for PR24 to meet future water resourcing requirements. Philip Dunne MP meanwhile pushed back against criticism that the government's CSO reduction plan lacks ambition.
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Ofwat urges companies not to wait for PR24 to act on CSOs
Ofwat has welcomed plans by wastewater companies to reduce harm to river water quality from combined sewer overflows but urged the sector to do more in the remaining years of AMP7 rather than waiting until the start of the next asset management period in 2025. The regulator vowed to take swift enforcement action in response to overflows triggered by unresolved operational and maintenance issues.
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Benyon defends CSO monitoring requirements
A government minister has defended new monitoring requirements for combined sewer overflows in the House of Lords after a fellow peer questioned why they do not cover the volume as well as the frequency of discharges. Lord Benyon, parliamentary under-secretary at the Department for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, was also challenged on why it had taken so long to introduce monitoring requirements in the first place and whether water companies should be allowed to award bonuses and dividends whilst pollution incidents continue.
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Lords committee launches inquiry into Ofwat’s powers
The House of Lords Industry and Regulators Committee has launched an inquiry into whether Ofwat is fulfilling its statutory duties and if it has the powers and resources to carry out its objectives. The committee will also examine specific issues such as sewer overflows and water companies' financial returns. 
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Wessex pledges £3m a month to tackle overflows
Wessex Water has set out plans to reduce the risk of harm from combined sewer overflows across its region with £150 million investment to 2025 to increase capacity at treatment plants, add nature-based solutions and separate foul from surface water.
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Silence isn’t golden
Consumer research shows water companies are increasingly being seen as the primary culprits when it comes to river pollution, yet public awareness of the work they are doing to mitigate these impacts is actually dropping. Ruth Williams asks why the water sector has struggled to make its voice heard.
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Public see sewage as biggest cause of river pollution
Untreated sewage has become seen by the public as the biggest cause of river pollution ahead of other contributors such as litter, fly-tipping and commercial waste, according to a new report by CCW. The consumer watchdog said its research found an increasing public awareness of the issue from media reports and urged sewerage companies to do more to inform billpayers what they are doing to address the problem.
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EDM data reveals scale of CSO challenge
Last year there were more than 300,000 discharges from combined sewer overflows in England and Wales according to data from Environment Agency from event duration monitors (EDMs) that are installed at 89% of CSOs. The data breaks down the number of recorded spills to company level.
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