Neil Blood
Senior Member & Supporter
Originally I mentioned this incident on the River Severn catch reports thread…
On the last weekend of the river season, I fished the Severn for Perch on both days. This was a short distance downstream of Monkmoor Sewage Works, which releases directly into the River Severn.
Saturday the fishing was very poor for me and others. I returned to the river on Sunday and was totally shocked at what greeted me. The river was a horrible grey milky colour. I’d liken it to the water that drains out of your washing machine. It just looked horrible and unappealing……. Long story short I blanked as did others fishing.
On enquiry it wasn’t until above Monkmoor Sewage Works that people caught fish. As there had been no rainfall in the preceding days, I reported it and heard nothing back from the E.A.
So I chased it and received this reply back:
Hi Neil,
We do not provide feedback on incident reports, and we will be unable to investigate all reports made to us. Our priority must be on incidents that present a higher or significant risk to people or the environment.
I can assure you that the information provided has been shared with our area colleagues who will consider what action, if any, is appropriate. We are not in a position to attend every report, but each one is recorded so we can understand the overall performance of the site or impacts on the local area.
If the incident worsens or continues for several days, you can report this again. We combine the information from reports with our other data to target work to improve the environment. It helps us build a picture of environmental threats and may allow us to secure additional funding for future action.
Our customer service commitment is on GOV.UK which includes information on how we handle it.
Clearly this is box ticking standard reply and doesn’t answer these basic questions:
- Based on my incident report, did the E.A ask Severn Trent if they were discharging significant amounts of untreated sewage on this date and during time of no rainfall?
- Under the self reporting scheme, did Severn Trent report that they were dumping sewage when they shouldn’t have been on this date and if not why not?
So in terms of the E.A getting a grip on the private water companies, what has actually changed?
Has anyone else had a similar experience lately?
I guess my only option now is to submit a freedom of information request regarding the above two points.
On the last weekend of the river season, I fished the Severn for Perch on both days. This was a short distance downstream of Monkmoor Sewage Works, which releases directly into the River Severn.
Saturday the fishing was very poor for me and others. I returned to the river on Sunday and was totally shocked at what greeted me. The river was a horrible grey milky colour. I’d liken it to the water that drains out of your washing machine. It just looked horrible and unappealing……. Long story short I blanked as did others fishing.
On enquiry it wasn’t until above Monkmoor Sewage Works that people caught fish. As there had been no rainfall in the preceding days, I reported it and heard nothing back from the E.A.
So I chased it and received this reply back:
Hi Neil,
We do not provide feedback on incident reports, and we will be unable to investigate all reports made to us. Our priority must be on incidents that present a higher or significant risk to people or the environment.
I can assure you that the information provided has been shared with our area colleagues who will consider what action, if any, is appropriate. We are not in a position to attend every report, but each one is recorded so we can understand the overall performance of the site or impacts on the local area.
If the incident worsens or continues for several days, you can report this again. We combine the information from reports with our other data to target work to improve the environment. It helps us build a picture of environmental threats and may allow us to secure additional funding for future action.
Our customer service commitment is on GOV.UK which includes information on how we handle it.
Clearly this is box ticking standard reply and doesn’t answer these basic questions:
- Based on my incident report, did the E.A ask Severn Trent if they were discharging significant amounts of untreated sewage on this date and during time of no rainfall?
- Under the self reporting scheme, did Severn Trent report that they were dumping sewage when they shouldn’t have been on this date and if not why not?
So in terms of the E.A getting a grip on the private water companies, what has actually changed?
Has anyone else had a similar experience lately?
I guess my only option now is to submit a freedom of information request regarding the above two points.
