How are sewage and wastewater managed in the UK?

• Every day, over 11 billion litres of wastewater are collected through approximately 347,000km of sewers in the UK.
• There are approximately 100,000km of combined sewers in England where rainwater and sewage share the same pipes.
• This means that clean rainwater and waste water from toilets, bathrooms, and kitchens are conveyed in the same pipe to a sewage treatment works.
• New sewers – built since the 1960s – have separate pipes for sewage and rainwater.
• Under this system, our bathroom waste and water from our washing machines and dishwashers is taken away to be treated at a sewage treatment works by a foul drainage pipe.
• Rain water is carried away separately into stormwater drains that eventually lead the water into a nearby river.

What causes sewage overflows and pollution?

• During heavy rainfall, the capacity of these pipes can be exceeded, which means possible inundation of sewage works and the potential to back up and flood peoples’ homes, roads, and open spaces, unless it is allowed to spill elsewhere.
• Combined sewer overflows (CSOs) were developed as overflow valves to reduce the risk of sewage backing up during heavy rainfall. There are nearly 15,000 CSOs in England.
• In 2021, 90% of storm overflows discharged at least once, and 5% discharge more than 100 times.
• Discharges were only meant to happen rarely in emergencies, but they have increased over recent decades.
• This has been caused by population growth resulting in more sewage being produced, and increased development meaning that more rainwater now runs into drains rather than soaking into the soil.

If this has been increasing over decades, why are we only seeing it now?

• The extent of sewage pollution has only become more broadly understood since water companies were made to monitor discharges.
• When the Government came to power in 2010, only 7% of sewage works monitored their discharges.
• Since then, the Government insisted on increased monitoring, with over 90% of discharges currently monitored, rising to 100% by the end of 2023.
• The coverage of sewage pollution we have been seeing over the past year is therefore largely due to greater transparency and reporting.

What are the other major sources of pollution?

• Abandoned metal mines pollute around 1,500km of rivers.
• Collaborative efforts by the Environment Agency (EA) and the Coal Authority have implemented schemes treating 7.4 billion litres of mine water annually, preventing 800 tonnes of metals from polluting waters.
• Farming and rural land management contribute to 45% of water body impacts through diffuse pollution caused by chemical runoff.
• The EA conducts inspections of farms to provide advice on environmentally friendly practices.
• The new Environmental Land Management Scheme incentivises farmers to protect and enhance water resources.

What is the current ecological status of bathing waters and has there been any improvements in quality?

• Research conducted by the EA in 2019 comparing the changes in water quality over a decade-long period.
• Results showed that 93% of bathing waters in the UK were classified as ‘good’ or ‘excellent’.
• This marked a significant improvement from the 70% ‘good’ or ‘excellent’ recorded in 2009, and the 28% recorded in the early 1990s.
• These improvements in water quality were also achieved despite the EA introducing tougher standards in 2015.
• Despite dipping slightly, in 2022, out of 419 bathing waters measured in England, 97.1% met at least the minimum standard, and 72.1% achieved the ‘excellent’ standard.

What progress has been made in reducing pollution incidents and improving biodiversity in rivers?

• There has been a significant reduction in serious pollution incidents caused by water and sewerage companies, dropping from over 500 incidents annually in the 1990s to a record low of 44 in 2020.
• Sewage treatment works have also decreased the discharge of harmful chemicals, with 67% less phosphorus and 79% less ammonia compared to 1995 levels.
• As such, improved biodiversity in rivers has been observed, with 76% of rivers in 2019 achieving good status for wildlife, supporting a thriving river wildlife.

How are water companies regulated and held accountable?

• The Government, EA, and Ofwat are working together to improve water companies' performance, increase monitoring, and enhance accountability.
• Water companies can face fines for breaking the law, and regulators are working to enforce penalties and ensure companies fulfil their functions while protecting consumer interests. Water companies face fines for breaking the law, with fines totalling over £144 million secured by the EA since 2015.
• The EA are also making it easier for regulators to enforce penalties and hold them to account.

What initiatives and investments are being made to address sewage and pollution issues?

• As part of the Environment Act 2021, all water companies are now legally obliged to have and implement sewage discharge reduction plans.
• Statutory sewage reduction targets are now in place, backed up by fines that are now unlimited.
• In August 2022, the Government’s Storm Overflows Discharge Reduction Plan was launched with the aim of eliminating overflows by 2050.
• The plan set out stringent targets and is backed up by up to £56 billion capital investment, the largest infrastructure programme in water company history.
• The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) will tighten permits issued to water companies for storm overflows to make sure water companies deliver the targets in the Storm Overflows Discharge Reduction Plan.
• Water companies will be required to increase the capacity of their networks and treat sewage before it is discharged, while massively reducing all discharges.
• Water companies are investing £3.1 billion to deliver the 800 storm overflow improvements across England by 2025.
• Southern Water's Clean Rivers and Seas Task Force focuses on reducing the use of storm overflows.

What efforts are being made to manage water resources in the UK?

• Water scarcity concerns arise from a changing climate, which leads to more erratic water supply and increased droughts, combined with population growth.
• The National Framework for Water Resources is designed to help manage this, and includes targets such as:
  • Limiting severe water restrictions to a 0.2% risk per year
  • Reducing water consumption to 110 litres per person per day
  • Halving leakage
  • Developing new supplies through reservoirs and transfers
• Collaboration between the EA, water companies, regulators, and the Government is underway to achieve these targets.

Why not just renationalise the water sector?

• Renationalisation of the water sector would be detrimental to taxpayers, investment, and innovation.
• The long-term investments in infrastructure that are required will need significant capital spending. This can be done in two ways:
  • Through Government owning the industry and raising money through general taxation and borrowing, with the latter requiring interest to be paid.
  • Through the private sector raising capital, in which case dividends will need to be paid to those who provide the capital.
• With state ownership, the water industry would have to compete for resources with the likes of the NHS, schools, and the police.
• As with the previous period of nationalisation, water investment would likely be squeezed out by other departments deemed more important.
• Since privatisation in 1989, around £170 billion of investment has been achieved through private finance.
• Southern Water has invested more than £10 billion and increased the volume of wastewater that is fully treated before release back into the environment from 50% to 95%.
• Since 2017, they have also not paid any dividends to its shareholders.
• Ofwat will continue to regulate prices and ensure water companies fulfil their functions while protecting consumer interests.