Surprising amount on river pollution in The Times today. A front page article, a two-page report and an editorial, all lamenting the decline in water quality, reduction in testing, drop in prosecutions and increased risk to public health. There are plenty of specifics in the articles, and they are pitched to reflect/cause concern amongst groups like wild swimmers (increasingly popular apparently) and parents of children who play in the water, both reporting illnesses. The paper blames a weak EA which doesn't address its own data and water companies allowed to mark their own homework and even propose their own penalties for breaches. The conclusion is that if the EA needs more money than the taxpayer can afford, the water companies can stump up. Interesting to see this in a paper typically big on business and tepid on the environment?
The Times discovers river pollution.
- Thread starter nottskev
- Start date
"No river safe for bathing" is the headline, John, followed by "Toxins at highest levels since testing began".
It's not the paper I read, but I picked it up in a supermarket where you get a free paper if you spend £10.
It's not the paper I read, but I picked it up in a supermarket where you get a free paper if you spend £10.
Jeff Woodhouse
Moaning Marlow Meldrew
The EA always want more money than the public can stump up. Too many passengers.
We have a river that is 95% fed from a STW and it is clean and pretty good quality. However, the local indians believe that it is polluted by the STW and this is what is causing a lot of weed growth in the river. They ignore the fact that weed growth has gone mad just about everywhere there is water this year.
Strangely though, a brook that doesn't flow very well, but does join our river has been tested recently and whereas the river from the STW was found to be normal and within permitted levels, the nitrate and phosphate levels in the brook went off the scale, all of which comes from cattle. It is highly polluted.
steve2
Well-known member
The simple fact is with growing population and the same amount or less water to share treated sewerage entering the rivers must rise.
Seeing that Thames Water and other companies regularly, legally or otherwise dump untreated sewerage into the waterways who in their right minds would swim in it.
Seeing that Thames Water and other companies regularly, legally or otherwise dump untreated sewerage into the waterways who in their right minds would swim in it.
Jeff Woodhouse
Moaning Marlow Meldrew
David Walliams?
Oops. Just noticed "... who in the right minds ..."
Well, then there was the couple I encountered the other week during the really hot spell. Didn't do them any harm. I really do believe that a lot of this is just political BS, but the truth just doesn't make a good story.
Edit bit: Note - sewerage is the pipework that SEWAGE flows through.
If that couple are ok, there can't be a problem. I used to go The Times, The Guardian, the BBC, Channel 4, but now when I want the real story, I come here
steve2
Well-known member
Keith M
Well-known member
In Herts there are lots of chalk streams that have almost dried up; compared to their normal levels, and although some of this has been caused by the warmer and drier climate; the majority of it is because infinity gets all of its water from the aquifers and none of its water from storage reservoirs, and water abstraction has increased steadily each year. I was told that that every drop of water in the Lea has been through approx 5 people by the time it reaches the Thames.
This is also true of many other places around the country I’m sure.
The creation of a large reservoir in this area to alleviate the shortages wouldn’t be a bad idea instead of bleeding our streams and rivers dry.
I turned up with my tackle to fish a local stream/river yesterday only to find out that the club has suspended fishing there for a week or two due to the very low flows and this is one of the healthiest streams in this area which in my memory hasn’t suffered this way in the past, but it now suffers low levels of water regularly even during the winter months.
Keith
This is also true of many other places around the country I’m sure.
The creation of a large reservoir in this area to alleviate the shortages wouldn’t be a bad idea instead of bleeding our streams and rivers dry.
I turned up with my tackle to fish a local stream/river yesterday only to find out that the club has suspended fishing there for a week or two due to the very low flows and this is one of the healthiest streams in this area which in my memory hasn’t suffered this way in the past, but it now suffers low levels of water regularly even during the winter months.
Keith
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steve2
Well-known member
Keith, what you are seeing is the future of small stream fishing it's literally going down the pan with the increase in population. **** Walker pointed this out in the 50’s with the over abstraction of Hertfordshire streams and nothing as changed in 60 years.
No one it seems as an answer to the question where does the water come from when the aquifers are pumped dry.
No one it seems as an answer to the question where does the water come from when the aquifers are pumped dry.
theartist
Well-known member
The water companies are clever on that front as they will ration the water before they go dry, firstly by lowering the water pressure then if there's no rain the dreaded hosepipe ban and following that standpipes. They try to avoid the latter two as it looks bad and people start ask questions. Rain usually comes to avoid them any embarrassment but not enough as you and I know to keep these rivers from slowly dying year on year