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04
Sept
Yorkshire Water defends sewage record in Ripon
Yorkshire Water has defended its record on sewage discharges amid concern in Ripon that children can’t ‘paddle safely in our rivers free from pee and poo’.
The Stray Ferret reported yesterday (September 3) that Ripon City Council is expected to call on Yorkshire Water to stop dumping sewage into local waterways at a meeting on Monday.
You can read more here.
The Stray Ferret asked the utility company to respond to the city council motion, put forward by Councillor Jackie Crozier.
We also asked whether chief executive Nicola Shaw would take up Cllr Crozier’s invitation to attend a future meeting to explain why discharging sewage in rivers is acceptable.
Sewage is released at 19 locations in the Ripon area, according to Yorkshire Water’s live storm overflow map, often during heavy rainfall when stormwater and wastewater systems exceed capacity.
The discharges, which are permitted by the Environment Agency, prevent sewage from backing up into homes, gardens, and streets.
A Yorkshire Water spokesperson said:
Our storm overflows operate more often than we, and our customers, would like, and we’re committed to reducing their operation.
We’re underway with a £1.5 billion investment programme to reduce the number and frequency of storm overflow discharges across the region between 2025 and 2030 — this includes a number of projects in Ripon that are currently being investigated. This follows a £180 million investment in the couple of years prior.
We’re seeing the positive results of these investments. In 2025, we reduce the number of discharges into watercourses by 24.5%, following on from a 12% reduction in 2024.
Regarding Ms Shaw’s attendance at a meeting, the spokesperson said:
“We’re yet to receive a request from Ripon City Council for the attendance of Nicola Shaw at one of the meetings. That being said, we’ll do our best to make a Yorkshire Water representative available for a meeting should we be asked to attend.”
The latest sewage spill in the Harrogate district was at Stainley Beck, where pollution was emptied into the river for at least five hours yesterday (Sep 3). Pollution was also dumped into the water at Oak Beck for 25 minutes in the early hours of yesterday and at Ripley Beck for 12 hours, 51 minutes on September 2.
Lib Dem support
Former Liberal Democrat mayor Cllr Barbara Brodigan, who has raised sewage concerns in leaflets, said her party would support the motion by Cllr Crozier, who belongs to the Independent Putting Ripon Before Party Politics group.
Cllr Brodigan added:
However, we believe in action not just words. Hence we hope Ripon Independent Putting Residents Before Party Politics will support our motion to set up a climate working group, which will identify local projects such as measuring pollution levels in the Ure, Skell and Laver and thus deliver actions which have a positive impact on Ripon residents.
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