Water firm invests £1.4m to cut sewage discharges

A £1.4m project to reduce the amount of storm water flowing into a river in South Yorkshire has begun.

The work near Park Hill, in Sheffield, is designed to improve a sewer overflow system.

During periods of heavy rain, it discharges water from sewers into the River Don to prevent flooding in residential areas or waste backing up.

Yorkshire Water said the scheme would increase the capacity of the network to keep more water in the sewer system and out of the Don.

The work at Cricket Inn Crescent will include rebuilding a combined storm overflow, fitting new manholes and upgrading pipework.

Lumi Ajayi, the project manager, said the scheme was part of a £180m investment to reduce storm overflows and improve water quality across South Yorkshire.

"On completion it will reduce the frequency of storm discharges flowing into the river Don by 48%," Ms Ajayi added.

Yorkshire Water said it had set aside £1.5bn "to reduce storm overflows and improve water quality" in the region between 2025 and 2030.

Listen to highlights from South Yorkshire on BBC Sounds, catch up with the latest episode of Look North or tell us a story you think we should be covering here.