This article is from the source 'bbc' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.
You can find the current article at its original source at http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-cornwall-36956165
The article has changed 3 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.
| Version 0 | Version 1 |
|---|---|
| South West beach water affected by raw sewage, water bosses admit | |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| Raw sewage is being pumped into the sea around Devon and Cornwall after heavy rain overwhelmed drainage systems, water bosses have admitted. | |
| Water quality warnings have been issued on beaches in the county because of the problems, South West Water said. | Water quality warnings have been issued on beaches in the county because of the problems, South West Water said. |
| It said intense rainfall leads to run-off from fields and towns combining and affect bathing water quality. | It said intense rainfall leads to run-off from fields and towns combining and affect bathing water quality. |
| Andy Cummins, Surfers Against Sewage (Sas), said the drainage infrastructure needed to be upgraded. | Andy Cummins, Surfers Against Sewage (Sas), said the drainage infrastructure needed to be upgraded. |
| "We need a sewage infrastructure that can cope with the amount of rainfall we get year on year," he said. | "We need a sewage infrastructure that can cope with the amount of rainfall we get year on year," he said. |
| "Our infrastructure needs to be able to cope with everything we put down the loo." | "Our infrastructure needs to be able to cope with everything we put down the loo." |
| Sas has previously slammed South West Water's systems after claiming there had been 40 incidents of raw sewage polluting beaches in one weekend last year. | Sas has previously slammed South West Water's systems after claiming there had been 40 incidents of raw sewage polluting beaches in one weekend last year. |
| Mr Cummins said many people were not even aware "raw untreated human sewage" was discharged into the sea when the problem arose. | Mr Cummins said many people were not even aware "raw untreated human sewage" was discharged into the sea when the problem arose. |
| Tourism groups in the area have complained about the sewage, saying it puts people off going into the sea. | |
| Fatos Fida, on holiday from London, said: "I think it is disgusting. As a tourist I had no idea. It puts me off visiting the beach as it isn't hygienic." | |
| A South West Water spokesman said they operate an information system telling people about storm water overflows and the risk of pollution affecting quality. | A South West Water spokesman said they operate an information system telling people about storm water overflows and the risk of pollution affecting quality. |
| The firm was the only water and sewerage company of the nine operating mainly in England, to have performed "significantly below target" by the Environment Agency's (EA) 2015 performance assessment. | The firm was the only water and sewerage company of the nine operating mainly in England, to have performed "significantly below target" by the Environment Agency's (EA) 2015 performance assessment. |
| It had 171 category 1-3 pollution incidents per 10,000 km of sewer, 74 more than the next worst-offending firm, the EA reported. | It had 171 category 1-3 pollution incidents per 10,000 km of sewer, 74 more than the next worst-offending firm, the EA reported. |
| An Environment Agency spokesman said being rated "poor performance" led to "more visits, scrutiny of incidents we attend and increases the number of audits we carry out". | An Environment Agency spokesman said being rated "poor performance" led to "more visits, scrutiny of incidents we attend and increases the number of audits we carry out". |