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05
Jun 2023
Outrage over water firm’s response to concerns over quality of River Nidd
Yorkshire Water has sparked outrage by appearing to suggest pollution in rivers such as the Nidd was partly down to a “change in expectations” from residents.
A study by Professor Peter Hammond revealed the equivalent of 317 Olympic pools of raw sewage were discharged into the Nidd at four sewage treatment works in 2020.
Prof Hammond said the sewage was released into the river at Pateley Bridge, Harrogate, Darley and Kirk Hammerton.
Nidd Action Group and Harrogate and Knaresborough Conservative MP Andrew Jones are campaigning for a stretch of the Nidd at Knaresborough to be granted bathing water status, as part of a drive to clean up the watercourse.
The figures prompted Ouseburn Green Party councillor Arnold Warneken to say water companies should be obliged to produce accurate figures on sewage discharge or face prosecution.
The Nidd saw 870 sewage dump incidents last year, according to Environment Agency figures. Recent testing of water pollution in the river has shown the harmful bacteria E. coli is at “concerningly high” levels.
Yorkshire Water’s chief executive apologised last month for sewage being discharged into the region’s rivers and promised to invest £180m in reducing leaks from storm overflows.
However, councillors told a North Yorkshire Council meeting in Skipton on Thursday that Yorkshire Water’s response to water quality concerns raised by Skipton and Ripon Conservative MP Julian Smith had been “profoundly inadequate”.
The firm wrote:
Councillors said the firm was blaming the apparent lack of sewage infrastructure near waterways “on the fact that people’s standards had increased and the firm’s monitoring processes improving”.
Flooding concerns
In a separate response, to Harrogate and Knaresborough councillors, Yorkshire Water said “climate change and changes in land use have had a huge impact” on the sewage network.
The firm wrote:
Nevertheless, many North Yorkshire councillors say they have been inundated with sewage-related complaints, with Bishop Monkton Conservative councillor Nick Brown saying Yorkshire Water had promised an action plan to stop sewage flooding in six of his parishes.
Read more:
- 317 Olympic pools of raw sewage pumped into River Nidd, study claims
- Yorkshire Water chief executive apologises for sewage failures
Aire Valley Green Party councillor Andy Brown told Mr Smith there had been “a gradual drift towards releasing sewage when the weather isn’t particularly bad”.
He added:
When asked about who should pay for extra sewage infrastructure, Mr Smith replied:
Councillors told Mr Smith the government should be pressuring water firms to spend more of their profits on improving infrastructure.
Sick after swimming
The firm did not directly respond to Prof Hammond’s findings or claims made by councillors that children have become sick with suspected E coli after swimming in the Nidd.
Instead, Yorkshire Water stated storm overflows had not been identified by the Environment Agency as the reason why the ecological status of the river is poor.
It stated:
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