Sat 27 August 2022:
Britain’s environment minister on Saturday defended government plans to address sewage releases into rivers and the sea after opposition parties and environmentalists criticized the measures as insufficient and costly for consumers.
Recent sewage spills into popular river and sea bathing areas have caused widespread public horror, prompting activists to raise a concern over waters shared with the European Union.
The European Commission has received complaints from a number of lawmakers alleging that British sewage is being dumped into bodies of water within the Union.
Requiring them to invest £56 billion ($66 billion) over 25 years to improve infrastructure such as storm overflows, the UK government on Friday announced the “toughest targets ever” for water companies.
We’re announcing the largest infrastructure programme in water company history to crack down on sewage spills and end pollution.
Read more about our Storm Overflows Discharge Reduction Plan: https://t.co/SaCTkksRGu#EnvironmentAct #Sewage pic.twitter.com/4nBxtUGoOm
— Defra UK (@DefraGovUK) August 26, 2022
Britons have expressed frustration over the plan as some of that cost will be passed onto customers through bills.
While untreated wastewater goes directly into watercourses or the sea, storm channels are conduits used during heavy rain to prevent sewers from becoming overfull.
Criticising the plan, ‘The Rivers Trust’ charity said it was “too little, too late” and environment spokesman for the Liberal Democratic Party Tim Farron called it a “cruel joke”.
”You could argue that governments down the decades should have prioritised this,” said environment secretary George Eustice.
Last week, British citizens were warned to stay away from dozens of beaches due to concerns about public health and damage to wildlife.
The activist group Surfers Against Sewage reported 654 alerts of sewer overflows spilling sewage into bathing waters this summer from 171 locations in England and Wales.
Since its departure from the European Union, the United Kingdom has neglected its environmental commitments, Members of the European Parliament (MEPs) argued in a letter calling for legal or political action from the European Commission.
SOURCE: INDEPENDENT PRESS AND NEWS AGENCIES
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