The UK’s sewage crisis is now well documented, with water suppliers the length and breadth of the country facing increasing levels of criticism because of the use of combined sewer overflows (much of which is illegal and outside the remit of environmental permits) and the toll this is taking on the nation’s waterways.
However, it seems that there is still room enough left to shock, with the BBC revealing this month (October 17th) that water firm United Utilities illegally dumped more than 140 million litres of raw sewage into Lake Windermere over the course of three years at times when it was not permitted… with the company failing to report the vast majority of incidents.
In some instances, such as during periods of intense and heavy rainfall, it is permissible to use combined sewer overflows in order to prevent sewage from backing up into homes and businesses, but this practice is not without its own consequences, leading to environmental degradation, killing fish and causing toxic algal blooms.
In a statement, United Utilities responded to these revelations, saying that some of its releases into the lake could potentially be non-compliant, but added that more than 94 per cent of potential incidents are self-reported to the Environment Agency.
While it’s true that the company did retroactively report some discharges into the lake that had taken place from October 2023 onwards, the BBC has since obtained operations data that goes back to January 2021, showing that illegal discharges had actually been going on for over three years… a lot longer than the four months retrospectively reported on by the supplier.
The only site permitted to directly discharge sewage into the lake is the Glebe Road pumping station, which is authorised to make such releases by the Environment Agency in certain circumstances, as long as it pumps at least 245 litres of sewage per second to the treatment works.
The idea of this is that it should protect the lake, with the majority of sewage sent for treatment. Failure to comply in this regard is illegal. BBC data analysis found that failure to comply with the permit had taken place, with sewage dumped into the lake that should have been sent for treatment.
Between 143 and 286 million litres had been dumped illegally, with at least 102 million litres not reported by United Utilities.
Company insiders told the news source that the supplier would have known these illegal discharges were taking place because alarms and internal reports would have alerted staff to compliance failures in relation to discharge permits.
United Utilities itself responded, saying that construction has now begun on additional storage and treatment facilities to reduce sewage discharges, as well as implementing system changes to prevent the same issues from recurring.
Industry regulator Ofwat, meanwhile, said: “The allegations made against United Utilities in terms of environmental failures and under-reporting of pollution incidents are very serious and where evidence supports further action, we will not hesitate to use all the powers at our disposal.”
Save Windermere
As shocking as this latest development is, it seems that the problems facing Lake Windermere are by no means new. In fact, a Save Windermere campaign was set up in 2021 by Matt Staniek, who was inspired to take action after observing the sudden decline in quality of the lake.
The non-profit community interest company asserts that sewage discharges by United Utilities into the lake is by far the biggest contributor to its degradation, which is why this issue is currently the top priority. Other key water sustainability issues such as climate change, farmland runoff and septic tanks can then be tackled later down the line.
Windermere itself is England’s largest lake and a UNESCO World Heritage site, found within a National Park and an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. But, seemingly, this hasn’t prevented United Utilities from putting cost savings above environmental protections.
In order to protect the lake, now and well into the future, action must be taken now. Climate change is driving increases in the average annual surface temperature of the water (which has climbed by 1.7 degrees C in the last 70 years), as well as increasing the frequency and intensity of extreme weather events like flooding and drought.
As the tipping point for Lake Windermere approaches, the question must be asked: How long can these sewage discharges continue unchecked?