Rise in broken seaside sewage monitors with many faulty for two years running 

EMBARGO: 22:30 Thursday 3rd August 

• Over 100 monitors which are supposed to measure the amount of sewage being pumped into popular swimming spots found to be broken

• South West Water found to be the worst offender with over one in ten swimming water sewage monitors being faulty last year

• Beaches in Cornwall, Devon and Sussex found to have sewage monitors broken for two years in a row

• Liberal Democrats slam “national scandal” and demand urgent fix as families flock to the seaside for holidays as wettest July in recent years sparks fears of increase sewage overflows

New analysis of Environment Agency data by the Liberal Democrats has found a shocking rise in the number of broken sewage monitors designated for swimming water status areas, including popular seaside locations.

Last year, 112 sewage monitors were found to be faulty in swimming water areas, equating to one in ten of all the sewage monitors installed for these sites. 

This is a rise year-on-year from 2021, when 88 were found to be faulty in swimming water sites. 

The analysis also found sewage monitors which were broken the entire year, including Seaford in Sussex, a popular seaside location. The monitor is recorded as working 0% of the time in 2022, meaning there is no information on when and how much sewage was discharged there. 

The worst offender for broken monitors installed in swimming waters is South West Water, which had 31 monitors broken. Beaches at Bude Bay, Dawlish Town and Lyme Regis all have sewage monitors installed which have been faulty in both 2021 and 2022. 

Meanwhile, Southern Water has a sewage monitor near the popular Newhaven Beach in Sussex which has been broken for two years running. Last year the firm had 19 broken sewage monitors in bathing areas. 

Overall, 52 sewage monitors in swimming water areas were found to be faulty for both 2021 and 2022, showing water firms negligence in their infrastructure. 

The Liberal Democrats are calling on water firms to immediately fix the broken monitors at popular beaches, with millions flocking to seaside resorts this month. The party has raised fears that the water quality is unknown on beaches where children swim. 

Liberal Democrat Environment spokesperson Tim Farron MP said: 

“This is a national scandal. 

“These profiteering firms have been too busy stuffing their pockets instead of fixing basic infrastructure.

“With all these broken monitors, we have no idea just how much sewage people are swimming in. As millions of people flock to the beach this month, we need these monitors fixed immediately.

“Why is the Government just letting these disgraced firms get away with it? 

“The Conservative Government has buried their heads in the sand when it comes to the sewage scandal. The water industry feels lawless at times. Meanwhile, it’s children simply trying to enjoy the beach and our precious wildlife who suffer.”

ENDS

NOTES TO EDITORS

Data from the Event Duration Monitoring data provided by the water companies to the Environment Agency - https://environment.data.gov.uk/dataset/21e15f12-0df8-4bfc-b763-45226c16a8ac

• Water companies install and monitor storm overflows and are required to monitor all overflows by the end of 2023.

• Water companies must also flag when discharges from the storm overflows affect designated bathing water.

• A monitor is considered faulty when it functions for less than 90% of the time.