It is official we have the worst water quality standard in Europe!

I would, love to be near the seaside.
I never go in the water tho no matter what country I’m in.We aren’t the only one with sewage probs.
Yup, needs clearing up I’ll agree on that.New regs just out about water companies and no caps on fines for them, it sure is a start.

"WE" have very good water standards ,of course WE didn't privatise it .Our rivers are clean ...you can catch Salmon in the Clyde in the centre of Glasgow and our beaches are award winning .OUR drinking water is pure and clear and we have lots and lots of it .Loch Ness has more fresh water than ALL the sources of water in England and thousands of other Lochs of varying sizes .
Thats just ONE of the reasons Westminster wants to hang onto us .If you're talking about England please say England NOT the UK !

There would be an absolute outcry if Australian beaches were like this. The odd times, usually after floods, that they are polluted is something we totally wring our hands over. Do something about it, all of you!

The North Sea is clean enough here for me to swim in winter and summer we have daily water checks throughout the year only once last year do I remember us having a warning for a couple of days

I think there is more problems in rivers and certainly things like wet wipes do need banning

It’s not enough to wring our hands - pressure must be put on government to enforce existing regulations and crack down much more heavily on the privatised water companies - what is more important the health of our environment or dividends to shareholders? Stop trying to defend them. Also it’s industrial farming methods that lead to much of this pollution - this must be acknowledged too.

Oreo , saying we aren't the only ones doesn't help at all . I would like to know, though which other countries you are referring to which have such appalling standards of cleanliness in their rivers.
I am angry too about the gi-normous salaries paid to the CEOs of these companies and that they are very happy to accept them , in spite of the fact they are not doing their job.

Sewage (some) in sea water actually helps some wild birds such as eider ducks because it feeds the things they feed on. Less sewage (as currently in our wee sea loch) means less food for eiders. Their numbers have de creased massively in the last few decades and birdy people think too clean water is the reason.

So this is another thing that is not cut and dried and simple.

Also, I don't actually believe UK has the worst water quality in Europe. It may be that some places are bad but I don't think everywhere is by a long way.

My friend's house backs onto a canal. One day she saw her neighbour walk to the top of the garden and tip all her household waste into the canal. This despite having 5 council provided bins.

paddyann54

"WE" have very good water standards ,of course WE didn't privatise it .Our rivers are clean ...you can catch Salmon in the Clyde in the centre of Glasgow and our beaches are award winning .OUR drinking water is pure and clear and we have lots and lots of it .Loch Ness has more fresh water than ALL the sources of water in England and thousands of other Lochs of varying sizes .
Thats just ONE of the reasons Westminster wants to hang onto us .If you're talking about England please say England NOT the UK !

In Wales we have a not-for-profit water company, but the rivers and coasts are polluted here

The water rates are high so goodness knows what the money is spent on, not on enough new infrastructure.
One of our most polluted rivers is on the border between England and Wales so companies on both sides are at fault and the difference in water colour to green has become far more noticeable in the last few years.

I didn’t know the government had relaxed sewage regulations. Is that the case?
I do think pouring raw sewage on to the beaches/into the sea is disgraceful.

nanna8

There would be an absolute outcry if Australian beaches were like this. The odd times, usually after floods, that they are polluted is something we totally wring our hands over. Do something about it, all of you!

I was told that there is run off of fertilisers from the land to the sea which is affecting the Great Barrier Reef. The nitrogen causes algae to form which in turn causes damage.
☹

There is an area of plastic floating in the Pacific Ocean which is three times the size of France.

It is between California and Hawaii. No surprises there !

Not so perfect maybe paddyann
inews.co.uk/news/scotland/water-pollution-rivers-scotland-sewage-discharge-2182796

And CVD where did you get your information? according to this article Belgium is the worst for PFA’s.
However the UK certainly has got an out of control pollution problem.
www.theguardian.com/environment/2023/feb/23/revealed-scale-of-forever-chemical-pollution-across-uk-and-europe

Stop pointing at others. Our rivers are considered to be much worse than many other countries, particularly when we started to ignore EU regulations. Remember when we had blue flag beaches? Thérèse Coffey has a lot to answer for, she should insist on current regulations being enforced, bring in much more punitive fines and make sure they are adhered to - we have come to this situation because the companies found it cheaper to pay the fines ( which are often ignored anyway) than try to do anything about improving the infrastructure. Bring back into public ownership companies which do not adhere to regulations with NO compensation for shareholders.

I live on the northwest coast of England and our flat faces the Irish Sea. We do see people paddling and swimming in it but it still doesn't appeal to me to go in it so it must be ok. We have very sandy beaches so I think that has a lot to do with the colour of the water.
Our tap water is a different matter. It tastes disgusting and sometimes the chlorine smells stronger than at other times. I have a jug of filtered water in my fridge all the time for drinking.

Tap water is a different question to sea and river pollution.
Our tap water is one of the safest drinking water in the world.
Plastics and chemical pollution isn’t often taken into account with European listings of clean rivers/seas.
Sewage discharge needs to be better monitored and start fining companies until it hurts.
I still stay away from the sea in any country.

Kate1949

My friend's house backs onto a canal. One day she saw her neighbour walk to the top of the garden and tip all her household waste into the canal. This despite having 5 council provided bins.

I actually gasped when I read this... how do people not realise they are polluting our precious world.. it just defies belief..

pascal30

Kate1949

My friend's house backs onto a canal. One day she saw her neighbour walk to the top of the garden and tip all her household waste into the canal. This despite having 5 council provided bins.

I actually gasped when I read this... how do people not realise they are polluting our precious world.. it just defies belief..

They probably do, but just don’t care..

Hope she reported it

It's not all the water companies fault. It's people flushing the wrong things downstream toilets. You can't even trace who it is. My friends in a flat and frequently gets back flow from one of the flats above her. The plumber has a good idea who's causing the problem but they are not allowed to approach that dwelling I dividually.

Now there’s a suprise! Could it be something to do with the fact that our water companies are privatised and have to put shareholders’ interests before doing the works they are contracted to do???
You have to feel sorry for the 1%, after all the running costs of their mansions, fancy cars and yachts are enormous!
There used to be a saying about the quality of water in the Mediterranean
“One does not swim in the Mediterranean, one just goes through the motions”

disgusting isn't it? saying other countries have similar is just an excuse to let these companies carry on, I resent paying bosses huge sums in bonuses when they don't do their jobs properly. The only reason its being sorted now is cos there's an election coming up, otherwise water companies paying huge dividends to shareholders takes priority

Another benefit of Brexit. No more nasty regulations! Wonderful. And huge difficulties importing the necessary chemicals and technology. Hurrah.