Water and sewage companies in England have announced a £10bn water and sewage transformation plan as part of a major programme to reduce spills into rivers and seas
Water and sewage companies in England have apologised for not acting quickly enough on sewage spills.
To rectify the issue, a new water and sewage transformation plan has been put in place to reduce waste spills into our rivers and seas.
£10bn will be invested into a new National Overflows Plan, to be published this summer, which will enable the modernisation of the country’s sewers.
A new Environmental Hub will launch next year to give real-time information on all 15,000 overflows in the country, alongside the state of our rivers and coastal waters.
In addition, river quality monitors to be installed from 2025 onwards will be added to the Hub to let people see the real-world impact on rivers.
Sewage overflows could be cut by 140,000 each year following the new plan
Through the initial wave of the water and sewage transformation plan, sewage overflows could be cut by 140,000 each year compared to the level in 2020.
The new water and sewage transformation plan will help up to 100 communities protect rivers and outdoor areas of water used for swimming.
Each water and sewage company in England will also support the roll-out of new river swimming areas by drawing plans, applying for legal protection, and working with regulators to fix local sources of pollution.
More should have been done to address the issue of waste spillages sooner
Ruth Kelly, Chair of Water UK, said: “The message from the water and sewage industry today is clear: we are sorry.
“More should have been done to address the issue of spillages sooner and the public is right to be upset about the current quality of our rivers and beaches.
“We have listened and have an unprecedented plan to start to put it right. This problem cannot be fixed overnight, but we are determined to do everything we can to transform our rivers and seas in the way we all want to see.”
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