Monday 8th November is sewage dumping day

Article in today’s paper that says that wildlife conservationists etc are worried at the level of nitrates and raw sewerage at the Thames mouth.

A colony of seals are at risk as are a myriad number of other species.

In the 1950s the Thames was dead. It has taken all this time to get it back to a reasonable level.

One bloody vote by the government and we are whizzing back to the past.

www.euronews.com/green/2021/06/17/how-clean-are-europe-s-oceans-lakes-and-rivers

83% of bathing waters in Europe are clean
Cyprus is top
Guess which country has the lowest quality bathing waters?

lemongrove

Hope nobody swims in the Seine either Mokryna?

No thanks, but

The goal is to clean the river enough so it is suitable for Olympic athletes in 2024.

I agree veganstock. ..The country is losing its senses ..not just on this..It hardly surprises me anymore

Can’t believe there are some defending this policy.

I see the Tories voted it through.

The water companies must be laughing all the way to the bank, their donations clearly well spent.

Our wild life will now die in greater numbers than seen for decades.

All the work done to improve the habitats is literally being poured down the drain.

Hope nobody swims in the Seine either Mokryna?

I hope flags will be put up warning people not to bathe on the beaches and in the rivers that are not up to (European) standard.

I now live on the coast, my previous home was near a substantial river. My home prior to that was in a town sitting on the same big river but 25 miles upstream. My home before that was had a flood plain closeby.

I emailed my MP yesterday.

I live in a coastal area where the Conservative MP voted with the government on the last amendment. I’ve just written to him and urged him to back the amendment today, but it’s got me pondering. An MPs primary responsibility is to act in the national interest and also in the interests of their constituents.

In this situation it is most definitely not in the national or the constituents’ interest for untreated raw sewage to be pumped into our rivers and seas. Yet, I don’t believe there is any mechanism for holding MPs to account when they vote AGAINST these interests.

Note that this is about overflow, not intentional dumping

We really have two issues here, don't we? One is the discharges from storm overflows, which can be improved, and the other is the shortage of chemicals to treat the sewage. Which can't be solved immediately.

I gather that MPs will have 2 amendments to vote on tomorrow. One 8s the original Lords amendment, the other is the goat's U turn amendment, which, apparently isn't as strong.

www.theriverstrust.org/key-issues/sewage-in-rivers Note that this is about overflow, not intentional dumping.

www.thenational.scot/news/19570449.brexit-scotland-will-not-allow-untreated-waste-dumped-rivers/ Time will tell what will happen in Scotland - at the moment there is no shortage there of the chemical in short supply down south.

Everything crossed that pressure will see another u-turn, and that the EA is supported when prosecuting those breaking the law.

Given the recent U-turns in the face of almost universal outcry, it will be very interesting to see what happens tomorrow. If MPs vote for this then surely it is an indication that not only do they have no moral compass, but they do not learn from recent errors of judgement. If this is the case then what hope is there for us or the environment?

This was flagged up on twitter this morning. It's a quick, interesting read

Basically it points out that:

Our sewers are not all a problem
There are other 'nature based solutions' available which could mitigate the storm water effects
Not just the water companies but also developers should be part of the remedy, to incorporate better sewage systems in new developments

The huge sums of money the government were citing to excuse companies from not acting immediately are greatly exaggerated because the foregoing solutions are much cheaper.

There's no reason why the original Lords' amendment shouldn't be passed.

www.theriverstrust.org/about-us/news/sewage-scaremongering

rubysong

The sewerage/surface water drainage system was not set up for the way people live today. Unfortunately household waste water and sewerage goes into the same system as rain falling on the roads. The problems have grown hugely over the years and the upheaval of rebuilding the entire system would be immense. Many households have concreted their front gardens to park cars, building has taken place which stops rainfall soaking into the ground. Also nearly everyone has a daily shower. Just being 'brave' enough to reduce the number of showers taken would go a long way to stopping the outfalls of sewage. When I put 'Don't shower daily' as my Eco hint in a WI competition there were cries of shock. What is wrong with a basin of warm water, soap and a couple of flannels. Hands, face, pits & bits need a daily wash, the rest can wait a few days.

Very true, and it’s actually going to get worse with the mainly Victorian sewer system. Perhaps HS2 and the massive London centric Crossrail should be abandoned, the monies spent on renewing sewer systems, Water Companies too should be renewing them. I asked my water company why they were doing this, and not replacing sewers. No reply. No surprise.

The Twitter handle is VeganCyclist4. The first post in the thread was at 14.43 yesterday 6 Nov. Definitely worth reading.

Interesting thread on Twitter from someone living in Yorkshire Water area. They looked into who owned their water company, and why these big finance companies think water is an excellent monopoly to put your money into. They don't care about sewage in the sea or waterways, they care are about profit. And if ever there was a week when the British public had learned about how companies lobby Parliament, surely it's this last week.

The sewerage/surface water drainage system was not set up for the way people live today. Unfortunately household waste water and sewerage goes into the same system as rain falling on the roads. The problems have grown hugely over the years and the upheaval of rebuilding the entire system would be immense. Many households have concreted their front gardens to park cars, building has taken place which stops rainfall soaking into the ground. Also nearly everyone has a daily shower. Just being 'brave' enough to reduce the number of showers taken would go a long way to stopping the outfalls of sewage. When I put 'Don't shower daily' as my Eco hint in a WI competition there were cries of shock. What is wrong with a basin of warm water, soap and a couple of flannels. Hands, face, pits & bits need a daily wash, the rest can wait a few days.

Urmstongran

But hasn’t Boris gone green? Surely this won’t come to pass.
?

It's our local river that has gone green
Literally

I remember visiting Edinburgh and seeing a map showing that the entrance to the river was blocked because of human sewage. If it does happen we are regressing.

Depends if they whip, doesn't it. Look at last week's disgraceful
episode. Surely they should be allowed to vote with their conscience on this .
I think Boris will be whatever colour is in his best interest ;sky blue pink with yellow dots if necessary.

Aren’t all MPs having the opportunity to vote or is it just the Tories as you seem to suggest?

But hasn’t Boris gone green? Surely this won’t come to pass.
?