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Channel 4 news

Craig Wood

Craig Wood

Senior Member
Well , what everyone feared , has now been confirmed. Our rivers in the UK are being used to discharge raw , untreated waste. All water authorities have now admitted , they are discharging Raw waste into the Rivers , for 9 months of the year ! . That would explain why only last year , the River Wye turned a yellow / brown colour , last summer , despite no rain. The levels of pollution are so bad , they are advising people not to swim in the Rivers or allow their dogs to swim. I have known for some time , this country has been paying huge fines to the EU for not cleaning our Rivers and continuedly increasing raw sewage levels , which are now past the point of being deemed safe to humans and wildlife. Every new house that is built is adding to the problem. Its a huge headache for everyone , major revamping and the building of new sewer systems , also investment in new sewage treatment sytems/plants . The water authorities say they have no choice but to get rid of excess waste through outlets on rivers / seas because people would get a bit upset if their waste backed up to their home. But after they admitted they were now discharging approx. 6000hrs or 9months of the year , well then we all must realise that our rivers are now in desperate need for help.
 
I saw it myself. Barbel were also featured. England especially, is one of the most densely populated countries in the world. I can't see it getting any better to be totally honest. I've lost any respect I ever had for the EA.
 
Our (the public at large) relationship to our rivers has to change, people are more conscious of our oceans these days but many people under 30 probably couldn’t name even 2-3 types of fish that swim in our waters, it’s an environment that most are oblivious to. When you consider how important these environments are to the environment as a whole it’s literally criminal. The attitude of seeing rivers as a endless tap and open sewer in the same breath is mental, not to mention the ongoing “flood risk prevention” also known as habit destruction.
Public attention must be drawn to it and we as anglers are a damn good mouth piece to drive the message home.
 
We have had three trucks parked in our village for the last four months pumping out sewage and depositing it in the Windrush. In Oxfordshire the building mania has got completely out of hand. It takes three times as long to commute and weeks to see a GP. I lost faith with the EA over 10 years ago. I have no solutions and it's hard not to despair.
 
Habitat destruction under the auspices of flood defence protection has been going on for decades. My local river had many old fishing holding tree lines cut down. They've never recovered in over 20 years. All down to a decision by a newby graduate trainee according to the EA employees that I challenged at the time.
 
It's really difficult to feel positive when the those responsible for safeguarding our rivers and surrounding environment are so toothless. Together with all the other (stated many times within this forum, and elsewhere) environmental problems affecting rivers and the natural life therein, I'm almost surprised there are any fish at all. It seems they survive against the odds - but surely, their innate resilience isn't limitless.
 
This is an absolute disgrace. The EA are absolutely useless and the water companies a disgrace. Here's the link for anyone who didn't catch it

Channel 4 News

www.channel4.com www.channel4.com
 
The E.A have always been unfit for purpose! totally inept and corrupt, anglers have been talking about this destruction of our waterways for years from abstraction to oestrogen levels but it always falls on deaf ears because at the end of the day joe public doesnt give a damn about fish, if it was a cuddly furry creature being slowly destroyed they would be up in arms!
 
I have been protesting against the storm over flow pipes since the late 1960’s, still battering my head against all the idiots involved in this disgrace, from politicians both locally and nationally, water companies, sewage works building contractors they are all complicit in this disgrace, more house without the infrastructure is a national disgrace. We need a national campaign from a news paper like the Daily Mail is doing on plastic and the planting of trees, but make sure you don’t plant trees close the water courses. Sadly I’m afraid nothing will be done as the general public don’t care, its out of sight out of mind. Back in the 1980’s during a debate with some prospective MP’s I said “We have st’s and condoms strewn along the banks of the Ribble and Calder when sewage was released through Storm over flow pipes”, I was told “It’s not possible, I was making it up” the river banks of our rivers were clean. I along with the late Mick Holgate spent some two hours the following Friday afternoon collecting these offending items, I then posting off packages to each person who questioned my claims, of course none replied though they had received them as they were posted recorded delivery. The EA is just a huge quango not fit for purpose, all the top people are only interested is polishing the backside of their trousers as they try to climb the ivory tower in search of a huge pension at our expense, with our taxes including rod licence fees, but more important the loss of our habitat. Without a shadow of a doubt, the EA and everyone involved should be put on the unemployment list, they have sucked you the tax payer dry for far too long.
 
Yes the EA is not fit for purpose but ultimately this is about a wider failure of Government going back decades.

The EA is a Dept. of Defra, and no Government in recent history has ever given the Dept. the respect it deserves. It is generally regarded as a punishment post for Ministers, and as a Dept. that just generates bad news for the incumbent Govt. Since the coalition in 2010, no single Govt. Department has undergone the budget cuts that the Defra has - projected to be over 57% by the end of the next parliament in real terms when you take into account inflation. And we wonder why it can't function? They don't have the resources to investigate the vast majority of reported pollution incidents, then when they do they often don't have the resources to take polluters to court.

Defra is responsible for the EA. The Defra minister decides its budgets, is responsible for appointing the people that run the EA and for deciding the EA's policies and strategies. If the EA is not fit for propose then the buck has to stop squarely with the Government.

It was the Thatcher Govt in the mid 80's that privatised the water companies, against popular public opinion at the time, and that was after a decade of reduced investment in water sector. By the early 80's Govt spending on the water sector was less than a third of the levels of investment a decade earlier. We now have a situation where the Water Companies are paying out billions in dividends to its shareholders, while deferring taxation profits on those profits, and whilst at the same time increasing water bills by over 30% in the last 10 years. Then when they need to raise money for long overdue investment in failing infrastructure they have the nerve to try to go knocking on Governments door. It's a totally untenable situation.

But then it's not suprising. We have just had another General Election where other than climate change and some token promises of tree planting (always a sign that conservation has failed) there as barely a mention of the environment in terms of water quality and biodiversity. Is that because most people don't care? Perhaps.

No UK Government has ever had a cogent plan for the environment, all we get is a series of short-term sticking plaster policies and window dressing. They always seem to think that solving the problems facing our rivers is a zero-sum game when nothing could be further from the truth.

There is some hope on the horizon in terms of the Natural Capital Committee (NCC) chaired by Prof Dieter Helm which appears to have the ear of Govt. Natural Capital is a different approach to nature conservation, and maybe the only way to reach those dead-eyed politicians, policy makers and bean counters who intrinsically don't care about the environment. But still the same issues exist in the form of industry lobbyists and vested interests.
 
Totally disgusting!!
and like all these things unless it becomes illegal or starts killing people nobody is gonna do naff all to change it as much as it may be protested about. Unfortunately in several years from now British rivers are probably going to be completely lifeless with the shocking events they go through on a daily basis.
truely saddening.
 
I tell the dog walkers in the local country park I look after not to let their dogs swim or drink the river water. In the summer if you look carefully you can see brown stuff floating about 10mm diameter. Our club caught Thames water dumping filth(condoms, rag,towels etc) during low levels a few years ago. But the EA had to inform Thames water they were inspecting before they could attend . What a surprise on the day the outflow was crystal clear and 9 inches up. A couple of days later when Rob from the EA went down unannounced the filth was pumping out. Not long after he was moved from the area and nothing was done. The EA used to have sensors on the sewage outflow now they rely on self regulation,what a joke. At our recent river conference the EA put a young Australian graduate up as a speaker on Natural flood prevention. She was 3 months in the UK and from an outback dry state. I brought up a recent EA river straightening and all bank side cover removal to her. A senior EA man ,Rob Rees, stepped in and admitted they had cocked up. He said the plans had already gone through before the realised their mistake and it was too late to stop. He then said they would probably have to put in a backwater there to try to solve their error. Where I am the river is always low and never floods, even in the recent months it only came up 10 cm at its highest. Just below the river straightening at Rickmansworth two rivers and the canal come together, the area often floods. I am glad I do not live in a house on the Uxbridge road,they have just made it even more likely. I have a major issue with floating pennywort on the stretch I voluntarily look after. There was a trial to control it that seemed to be going well,the EA pulled the budget. I realised if I could put floating booms or diverters across side streams then I could stop them from becoming blocked and keep the pennywort to the main channel. The EA wanted to charge me £700 for permission to do each one, needless to say the side streams are now blocked. The EA workers at ground level seem to be real quality but the people in charge have no idea.
 
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Sadly , things will only get worse , especially now the UK is leaving the EU. But I suppose the share holders of the various water authorities , will now be rubbing their hands with glee , as they will no longer have to pay the fines issued by the EU.
 
Craig Wood said:
Sadly , things will only get worse , especially now the UK is leaving the EU. But I suppose the share holders of the various water authorities , will now be rubbing their hands with glee , as they will no longer have to pay the fines issued by the EU.
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To be fair the fines weren’t changing their behaviour so it’s probably a moot point. Its possible if public pressure mounts the old “were achieving EU standards” line (which they haven’t in this case) won’t be available to hide behind. Have to wait and see on that one, the U.K. government might just decide they want that cash for themselves... who knows.
 
I spent a few hours on my local river yesterday with eight sanitary towels hanging from the brambles on each side of me.
Woke up this morning with a soar throat.......a couple of weeks ago I had a 24 stomach bug. I'm not the sharpest tool in the box but I've just clicked why these little ailments mysteriously appear so often.
We live in first world country with third world sanitary practices .
 
A friend of mine Vauaghan tries his dam best in the upper Thames region...theres a link in there to place an objection. About the only thing you can do is appose any developments then may be planners wont listern to the bull shit the developers, water authorities and EA give them


Dear Colleagues

As many of you are aware, Witney STW has been 'storming' for around 2 months. The discharge is having a significant damaging impact on the downstream Colwell Brook and eventually the Windrush itself.

A proposed development in Hailey has the potential to increase the overloading of the sewage works during high flows even further. It is important that as many of us as possible object to the application as possible, not only to prevent this increase but to set a precedent that will prevent further damaging applications of a similar type.

The application can be found at https://www.westoxon.gov.uk/planning-building-links/planning-applications-(1)/. Click on the 'View Planning Applications' tab and simply type in the reference 19/03317/ful into the search field. The application for Erection of 110 house on land west of Hailey Road will appear. Click on the the make a comment button to submit a response. I have done this already and have reproduced my comments. feel free to draw on them as part/all of your submission.

This whole process will take you 10 minutes. It's worth it to help i small way to protect one of our local rivers. Without our collective efforts then it's future looks bleak.

Thanks in advance.
Regards
Vaughan

Comments from Vaughan Lewis
 
As an aside (all probably know this anyway), the objections to planning applications are looked on more favourably, if they're all original ie. not a proforma type response. I'll send in an objection if it helps.
 
Ady Brayshaw said:
As an aside (all probably know this anyway), the objections to planning applications are looked on more favourably, if they're all original ie. not a proforma type response. I'll send in an objection if it helps.
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Definitely... other than scream at the EA and get no where there’s not much else you can do. We have d success in Oxford with planners getting a large marina stopped which they then decided to make a solar farm instead.
 
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