Welsh Water Admits Long-Term Illegal Sewage Discharge
Welsh Water has confessed to years of illegally spilling untreated sewage at multiple treatment plants. This revelation comes following BBC analysis of the company’s data, which exposed the severity of the problem. Welsh Water has since acknowledged that approximately 40 to 50 of its wastewater treatment plants are currently operating in breach of their permits.
One of the most alarming cases of untreated sewage discharge has been found in Cardigan, West Wales, where it has been contaminating an environmentally protected area near a rare dolphin habitat for over a decade. The plant was found to be illegally spilling sewage for a total of 1,146 days between 2018 and May 2023, with more than 200 days of illegal spillage annually from 2019 to 2022.
The revelations were made public after mathematician and former University College London professor, Peter Hammond, shared his findings with the BBC. The analysis showed that 10 out of the 11 Welsh treatment plants that were reviewed had been releasing untreated sewage in violation of their permits.
In the UK, most areas use a combined sewerage system, where rainwater and wastewater share the same pipes. During heavy rainfall, sewage treatment plants can discharge untreated sewage to prevent overflows, but doing so before reaching the permitted overflow level is illegal.
The company defended its decisions on which plants to improve by stating that they were considering customer bills and the absence of "measurable environmental impact" at the Cardigan estuary spills as reasons for it being deemed a low priority. Work is scheduled to begin on a new treatment plan in Cardigan in 2025.
Environmental groups have contested the company’s reasoning, highlighting that testing at Poppit Sands, a designated bathing beach near the Cardigan plant, only occurs from May to September. There is also a lack of regular monitoring of the sewage discharges' impact on the River Teifi, a Special Area of Conservation (SAC) home to various aquatic species, including otters and Atlantic salmon. The River Teifi flows into Cardigan Bay, the habitat of one of Europe's largest bottlenose dolphin populations.
Natural Resources Wales (NRW), the authority responsible for enforcing permits, has admitted to being aware of the issues at Cardigan for eight years. While enforcement notices have previously been issued to the company, no fines have been sent to Welsh Water. Although NRW has prosecuted Welsh Water for pollution events in the past, it has not pursued legal action for illegal sewage spills like the ones at Cardigan.
Following this revelation, regulators in England are now launching a major investigation into potential illegal sewage discharges, with a focus on flow rates through treatment plants. The severity of the situation is undeniable, raising questions for both Welsh Water and NRW about their handling of this long-standing issue.
