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Neighbours appalled at sewage discharges in part of Kent have called a public meeting with Southern Water over the “crisis”. They have used Environment Agency data to establish untreated waste was discharged for a total of more than 6,000 hours in 2023, at seven sites which either feed the River Eden or its tributaries.
This total was discussed at a recent public meeting of the New Edenbridge and District Residents’ Association (NEDRA) and was met with “shock”, the group said. Sally-Ann Vine, chair of NEDRA, said: “The discharges are upstream of Bough Beech Reservoir. A polluted River Eden can lead to health risks for children, dog owners and anglers who could all be coming into contact with contaminated water from discharge activities.
“People have commented you used to be able to look into the River Eden and see the bottom of it – now you can’t. And the quality of wildlife in that area has deteriorated. We used to see kingfishers there, but you don’t now, or very rarely.”
She said residents were concerned about the river and its wildlife and tests of the water quality were now being undertaken. “It’s having an impact. The river’s very much a part of the character of Edenbridge, it’s very much a focus of this rural market town. We’d really like to know what Southern Water intend to do”, she added.
NEDRA plans to put its concerns to representatives of the water company at a public meeting on October 3. It will take place at Rickards Hall at 10.30am, and all are welcome. Sewage overflows are used to stop foul water flooding homes and businesses at times of heavy rainfall, but are only supposed to be used in exceptional circumstances.
Sewage spills into England’s rivers and seas by water companies more than doubled in 2023. The water companies say that is because of exceptionally high rainfall – but it hasn’t stopped a national outcry over the issue. Southern says its waste pipes – which also take rainwater – are overloaded when there is “extreme” rain or land becomes saturated, and that it is a bigger problem now thanks to climate change and population growth.
There were 464,056 spills in England in 2023, and overflows were in use for a total of 3.6 million hours, according to the Environment Agency. On the Eden, overflows were used more regularly. At Edenbridge waste water treatment works (WWTW), an overflow was used 75 times in 2023, spilling for a total 1,220 hours – the equivalent of 51 days. Upstream, an overflow at Lingfield was used 124 times in 2023, spilling into Ray Brook, a tributary of the Eden, for 2,086 hours, or 87 days.
When overflows are used, the substance pouring into rivers is 95% water, Southern says. A 20th of all sewage it is responsible for enters rivers and the sea without being treated, a figure the company says it is working hard to reduce.
Director for wastewater operations, John Penicud, said: “Slashing the number of storm releases is top priority for us – and our customers. Last November we announced our £1.5 billion storm overflow reduction plan which will combine innovative engineering with nature-based solutions.
“We’re extensively relining sewers, to keep sewage in and rainwater out, and our storm release reduction pilot schemes have already proved that nature-based systems can have a real impact.”
Analysis by Reach’s data unit reveals Southern Water’s storm overflows emptied into our region’s waterways 29,494 times last year. Those spills lasted a combined 317,285 hours, which works out as the equivalent of a single one being open for 36 years non-stop.
The amount of sewage released by Southern Water in 2023 was more than double the 146,819 hours in 2022. In 2021 the company’s overflows were open for 160,984 hours, and in 2020 they were open for 197,213 hours.
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