River Severn campaigners make stand on river sewage

A number of campaigners are refusing to pay part of their water bills in protest at the amount of sewage being discharged into the River Severn.

In all, combined sewage overflows discharged into the river for almost 29,000 hours in 2021.

It has left many residents along the Severn angry and some in Shropshire said they would not be paying Severn Trent Water for waste water removal.

The firm said it was making improvements to sewers.

Claire Kirby, from the campaign group Up Sewage Creek, said she would only pay for fresh water from the tap and not the part of the bill that covers waste water.

"If they're still pumping sewage into the river, I'm not happy about that and I'm not going to pay for it," she said.

Another resident, Jamie Russell, added: "The only thing left for me to do is try and withhold a bit of the money because that seems to be the only thing they care about."

Most of the UK has a combined sewerage system, meaning that both rainwater and wastewater - from toilets, bathrooms and kitchens - are carried in the same pipes.

Usually, all the waste is carried to a sewage treatment works, but during times of heavy rainfall the system is designed to overflow occasionally and discharge excess wastewater into sea and rivers, to reduce the risk of flooding.

However, campaigners say this happens all too regularly - in 2020 Severn Trent Water discharged sewage into rivers almost 61,000 times.

Wilfred Denga, a spokesperson at the company, said: "People are really passionate about this, but so are we. We are investing £100m every year in reinforcing our sewer network.

"We do accept that people would like to see us do more, so we are."

The firm has said despite its sewers, farming plays the most significant role in overall pollution in the Severn.

Figures from the Environment Agency showed the county had 59 of the most serious water pollution incidents between 2010 and 2021, second only to Cornwall.

Meanwhile, swimmers are trying to get parts of the Severn officially designated as bathing water so that it will be tested regularly.

Swimmer Alison Biddulph said: "At the edges [of the water] you tend to get sanitary products, toilet paper and that kind of thing.

"We're hoping to get a couple of stretches of the River Severn designated as bathing water so that the water will be tested to see how clean it is or otherwise.

"Then, if there's any pollutants in it, the Environment Agency will investigate who's polluting the water and what with."

Last year, the government pledged to overhaul the way sewers discharge into rivers and seas, however, the Rivers Trust branded its plan covering up to 2050 "too little, too late".

Follow BBC West Midlands on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. Send your story ideas to: [email protected]