Sewage dumping: Sussex MPs meet with Southern Water and the Environment Agency

The meeting on March 22 was chaired by Huw Merriman, MP for Bexhill and Battle. MPs called the meeting in order to discuss government targets to reduce discharges from combined sewage overflows (CSOs) and water issues that are impacting their constituencies.

Sir James Bevan, Environment Agency CEO, told MPs that water quality in the UK is, in fact, better than at any time since the Industrial Revolution, and this is entirely due to regulation introduced in the last 10 years under the Conservative Government. However, there is still much work to be done to end CSO discharges and monitor every discharge into waterways and the sea.

The Sussex MPs said they would not be happy until there were no pollution incidents. They were clear that monitoring and enforcement of water companies to hold them to account is paramount.

It was discussed that CSOs were not the only cause of pollution; farming and road runoff are also important issues which need to be addressed. Lawrence Gosden, Southern Water CEO, told the MPs they will be launching an industrialised approach to separate surface water from sewage, which will launch at the end of this month. An initial £25 million pathfinder project will be followed by a £2.8 billion plan.

MPs also asked what planning measures would help reduce overloading the sewage system. Environment Agency and Southern Water agreed that making water companies statutory consultees in the planning application process, would stop inappropriate development in water stressed areas. Other key measures would be to make sustainable urban drainage systems mandatory on all new housing sites, as well as making water efficiency as important as energy efficiency on all new homes.

Mr Merriman said: “I was encouraged by the strong commitment to improving water quality from both the EA and SW. It is clear that water quality has been ignored by successive governments for decades and we are now on a regulatory path to cleaning up rivers and sea bathing waters.

“As Sussex MPs, we want to see rapid progress and over achievement of targets. It’s a matter which is extremely important to us and our constituents. We were pleased to learn that by the end of the year, all outflows across Sussex will be monitored.

“This data is an important part of the process in controlling and understanding spill incidents. These have become more commonplace due to increased population and storm weather events overloading the Victorian sewerage systems. We are all agreed that we will be calling for planning reforms which prevent surface run-off entering the system and better water management in homes.”

Sir Peter Bottomley, MP for Worthing West, said: "We all understand that the quality of our bathing water matters to our local communities. Our seaside economy relies significantly on our high-quality beaches and bathing waters. Residents must be able to enjoy our beaches and swim safely. Everyone in a community suffers when unacceptable waste is found along the beach and when sensitive river environments are poisoned by untreated discharges from main drains.

“We expect water quality to improve as our systems become more efficient and effective and we recognise the improvements to date. Collaboration between Southern Water, the Environment Agency and our local and national government is critical to making the difference."

Rt Hon Gillian Keegan, MP for Chichester, said: “This is a huge, cross-MP, cross-area issue, and there's still a long way for Southern Water to go before we're in a place that we're happy with.

“We aren't there yet, but meetings like these are a really important way of keeping the channels open and continuing to keep the pressure on in Sussex”

Rt Hon Nick Gibb, MP for Bognor Regis and Littlehampton, said: “In seaside towns and villages, there are few things more important than ensuring that the sea water is clean, for both residents and for visitors. The Environment Agency and Southern Water need to leave no stone unturned in minimising and ultimately eliminating storm water overflows that lead to untreated wastewater discharges.

“It is very encouraging that all Sussex MPs and the Chief Executives of Southern Water and the Environment Agency are all working together to ensure that water companies are held to account. It is welcome that Southern Water is putting billions of pounds of investment into the sewer system and surface water drainage system to ensure that our rivers and sea remain healthy and clean.”

Andrew Griffith, MP for Arundel and South Downs, said: “West Sussex residents are rightly concerned about the health of our rivers but we must not confuse new data with it being a new problem. The truth is the issue has been there for many decades and it is this Government that is finally doing something about it. Southern Water and the Environment agency were left under no illusion how important it is that they act.”

MPs who attended:

Sir Peter Bottomley MP for Worthing West, Sally-Ann Hart MP for Hastings and Rye, Maria Caulfield MP for Lewes, Caroline Ansell MP for Eastbourne, Nusrat Ghani MP for Wealden, Henry Smith MP for Crawley, Gillian Keegan MP for Chichester, Nick Gibb MP for Bognor Regis and Littlehampton, Andrew Griffith MP for Arundel and South Downs, Tim Loughton MP for East Worthing and Shoreham and Jeremy Quin MP for Horsham.

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