Southern Water responds after latest pollution protest in Worthing

Concerned environmentalists displayed banners and posters outside the headquarters of Southern Water in Yeoman Road, earlier today (Friday, March 10), to protest against the ‘dumping of sewage into our seas’.

Green Party member Claire Hunt said: “Do you remember last year when there were days and days of alerts warning people not to go in the sea at Worthing because of sewage discharges?

"We don’t want another summer like that. Thirty nine per cent of sickness reports after bathing correspond with sewage discharge alerts. Their dirty discharges literally make us sick. They will keep putting profits before people and planet unless we let them know we won’t stand for it.”

Members of Worthing Green Party; Worthing Climate Action; Extinction Rebellion Worthing; CREW Climate Resilience Centre Worthing; Worthing Solidarity; Worthing Labour Administration; the Sea Sploshing Society; Plastic Free Worthing and other local people delivered messages directly to CEO Lawrence Gosden at the start of a second wave of national action across the UK.

Southern Water said it was ‘aware of this demonstration’ and ‘understands the concerns of those involved’.

A spokesperson added: “At Southern Water, we play our part in improving the standard of bathing waters, through major investments in treatment works along our 700 miles of coast – and we are working hard to extend our efforts and partnerships with other agencies to make an even bigger positive impact.

"This includes an industry-leading approach to reducing the use of storm overflows when increased surface and groundwater enter our sewers.

“We’re investing £2 billion (around £1,000 per household) between 2020 and 2025 and we haven’t paid a dividend to shareholders since 2017, preferring instead to put our money into improving our network and infrastructure.”

The first wave of national action in February saw campaigners unveil a satirical blue plaque on the beach and around town to ‘highlight government legislative failures to stop water companies polluting’.

Environmental groups pointed to the statistic that only 14 per cent of the UK’s rivers achieve ‘good’ ecological status with pollution from agriculture, human sewage, roads, and single-used plastics creating a dangerous ‘chemical cocktail’ in our waterways.

In December the Environment Agency announced it was pushing back targets to clean up England’s rivers, lakes and coastal waters from 2027 to 2063.

Emma Cameron, a spokesperson for Worthing Climate Action Network, said: “We’ve watched in horror as our rivers and seas have become open sewers. We need clean seas, swimming boosts physical and mental health and ocean ecosystems keep us all alive. Southern Water should clean up their act.”

Amberlouise Everitt, from CREW Climate Resilience Centre Worthing accused Southern Water of ‘committing ecocide’ – mass damage and destruction of ecosystems.

“It is cheaper for water companies to poison and pollute our rivers and seas than pay to put in the infrastructure to clean sewage,” she said. “Something needs to change and fast if we are to save our natural environment.”

Councillor Vicki Wells, cabinet member for environment, said Worthing Borough Council's Labour administration is ‘doing everything possible’ to ‘ensure we protect our coastal and inland waters’.

She added: “This includes improved monitoring of water quality by increasing bathing designations from one to three, increased local testing for ammonia at outfalls, ensuring Southern Water work to locate and remediate the sources of bacterial pollution as a matter of urgency.

"In addition we have joined a collective of 40 local authorities across the South East to create a collective voice and demand improvements across the board to end the appalling and negligent releases of sewage.”

You can visit CREW Climate Emergency Resilience Centre, 8/9 South Street, Worthing, for more information or sign up to https://actionnetwork.org/forms/dirty-water.

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