(This March 27 story has been corrected to make clear that the data relates to Britain, not England, in the headline and paragraph 1)
LONDON (Reuters) – English water companies released untreated sewage into the country’s waterways for more than 3.6 million hours in 2024, a slight increase on the year before and a record high, official data showed on Thursday.
The pumping of sewage into rivers and seas has become a major scandal in Britain, with privatised water companies accused of prioritising dividends over investment and dumping sewage in waterways when its ailing infrastructure cannot cope.
The Labour government has launched a review of the whole sector and the industry regulator Ofwat has said that customer bills should rise by an average of 36% before inflation over the next five years to rebuild pipes, tunnels and pumping stations.
But the industry has warned it will take time before increased investments have an impact on sewage leaks.
Data released by the Environment Agency on Thursday showed that the duration of sewage spills rose by 0.2% to 3.6 million hours, with South West Water the worst water supplier, releasing sewage for 544,439 hours.
“These figures are disgraceful and are a stark reminder of how years of underinvestment have led to water companies discharging unacceptable levels of sewage into our rivers, lakes, and seas,” Environment Secretary Steve Reed said in a statement.
South West Water, which provides water and sewerage services in the counties of Devon and Cornwall, said it was making progress after launching a 15-year investment plan to tackle spills at beaches in the holiday season and the highest spilling sites, despite it having exceptional rainfall last year.
“While change on this scale takes time, we are already seeing positive results,” Richard Price, managing director of Wastewater Services at the company, said.
(Reporting by Kate Holton; editing by William James)
