Following my latest post on the BIT covering among other things the issue of sewage discharges, Susannah Rae - a former water industry employee and ex-environmental regulator - has put together a most helpful Q&A document answering some of the key questions around the issue - including what it has to do with Brexit. It adds very useful further information and nuance to my discussion of ‘sewagegate’ in my blog post.
Note that Susannah’s take is that Brexit did not change the situation on the ground, as the problems existed before and remain the same after Brexit. I do not think that necessarily contradicts my claim that in terms of legislation Brexit has removed one constraint that could have increased pressure on the UK government to address the issue - namely EU directives and the threat of ECJ action. Susannah’s view is that perhaps the current crisis creates enough popular discontent to spark the government into action even in the absence of any pressure from the EU.

Here is the full text of her document:

We have all been horrified by images of sewage pouring into the sea around the coast of England. So how did we end up in this situation?

Most of the rainfall that runs off roofs, gardens, streets etc goes into the same pipes as sewage. If the pipes get too full, either through rainfall or blockage they spill from Combined Sewer Overflows (CSOs), releasing untreated sewage into the environment. Further information is available on the Environment Agency website. The Environment Agency’s plan for improvement can be found here.

Didn’t the EU tackle this kind of thing?

The European Commission Directive about managing sewage pollution was issued in 1991, requiring sewage to be treated and not spilled. The exception to this rule is that spills are allowed during heavy rainfall so as to avoid sewage backing up into people’s houses and gardens.

Due to the cost of infrastructure which would have been required to avoid sewage spills in a generally wet country, the UK interpreted the Directive so that sewage could be spilled during light rain if it did not cause harm. Investment was therefore targeted to areas where spills were found to be causing most harm. Other areas were left to spill.

Are spills increasing?

The picture on spills is mixed. In some areas spills are now worse due to a combination of:  lack of investment and maintenance, increasing urbanisation (eg driveways being paved over), widespread flushing of wet wipes down the toilet and putting oils down the drain. More intense storms due to climate change are also expected to increase sewer spills. Increased monitoring also means that more spills are being reported. Surfers Against Sewage provide a comprehensive summary of results in this report.

Has Brexit lead to an increase in sewage spills?

CSO spills are not Brexit related.

Brexit and Covid did create supply chain risks for the water industry. In 2021, a shortage of lorry drivers led to a risk that there would be insufficient chemicals to treat sewage. This resulted in a temporary regulatory position statement from the Environment Agency saying that the EA would not take enforcement action against companies unable to obtain necessary chemicals. This was a temporary measure and a separate problem from the main source of sewage pollution caused by CSO spills which happen before sewage is treated and which predate Brexit.

What about the UK parliamentary vote on sewage spills?

In 2021 the Duke of Wellington proposed an amendment to the Environment Act that would have put a duty on sewerage undertakers to take all reasonable steps to ensure untreated sewage is not discharged from storm overflows. This was voted down by Conservative MPs who continue to argue that it was impractical, despite the amendment receiving support from the Water Industry. Following an outcry, the UK government put forward its own amendment to make water companies “secure a progressive reduction in the adverse harm caused by sewage dumps”

Are the spills a result of privatisation?

CSO spills predate privatisation. Clearly privatisation has led to payouts to share holders at a time when progress in reducing CSO spills has been incredibly slow. However Scotland, where water is still in public hands, also has a CSO spill problem. The Scottish Environment Protection Agency has outlined its position highlighting the need for investment and Scottish Water has published a routemap for improvement.

So what next?

The good thing about the recent outcry, despite the many misunderstandings, is that water providers are well aware of public anger and politicians feel under pressure. However, improvement will take a lot of investment. The most basic form of improvement is screens, which take out the biggest lumps but don’t prevent polluted water from being discharged. Separating out sewage from rainfall runoff would involve new pipes, digging up streets and a lot of disruption. The only practical way to significantly reduce sewage spills is to redesign our towns and cities so that they absorb rainwater before it reaches the drains. Local authorities need to do this as water companies do not have any control over urban land use. It will need significant investment and cooperation between national and local government and water providers.

Useful websites on campaigns and for looking at progress include Surfers Against Sewage and the Rivers Trust.

 Susannah Rae

Susannah worked in the water industry for 30 years. Her Twitter handle is @susannah4europe