Wales Faces Sewage Crisis: Welsh Water Criticized for Record Discharges and “Lack of Ambition”

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Cardiff, Wales – A new study by Surfers Against Sewage (SAS) reveals that Welsh Water discharged sewage more than any other water company in the UK in 2024, sparking outrage from environmental groups and raising concerns about the health of Welsh waterways.

The report found that Welsh Water released sewage 118,276 times, equating to more than one sewage spill every five minutes. The total discharge time amounted to 968,340 hours. SAS also highlighted that Welsh Water’s target of 30 incidents per Combined Sewer Overflow (CSO) by 2030 lags behind the average target of 21 per CSO set by other UK providers.

Giles Bristow, CEO of Surfers Against Sewage, condemned Welsh Water’s performance:

“The sheer lack of ambition shown by Dŵr Cymru Welsh Water to reduce pollution shows they have no shame over the catastrophic levels of sewage they are spewing into Wales’ beautiful coastline, rivers and lakes. With such clear mismanagement, it’s no wonder that less than a quarter of people believe that their water supplier has used their bill payments responsibly.”

Bristow went on to criticize the broader regulatory framework:

“Welsh waters have been polluted for far too long and the whole system is to blame. Dŵr Cyrmu Welsh Water has been polluting regularly. A shambolic regulator has let them get away with it and the government is asleep at the wheel. It’s time for change. With an election rapidly approaching, politicians in Wales need to stop stalling and start acting to get a grip on this broken system.”

SAS also reported receiving 1,853 sickness reports from UK water users, estimating that sewage pollution led to nine years’ worth of sick days, costing the UK economy approximately £493,200.

In response to the report, a spokesperson for Welsh Water offered a different perspective:

“Both England and Wales are working to tackle issues surrounding storm overflows, with a slightly different focus. We operate over 2,300 storm overflows in Wales as we have a very high number of assets for a relatively small population. Many of our rural communities are served by smaller sewerage networks and storm overflows, which are essential to ensure networks do not become overwhelmed and flood properties.”

The spokesperson also pointed out that Wales is prioritizing overflows that cause the most environmental harm, whereas England is focusing on reducing the overall number of spills. They added that Wales experiences higher rainfall, leading to more frequent sewer system capacity issues.

“Also, as a country on the western side of the UK, we have some of the highest levels of rainfall. The more rainfall, the more times the sewer system is at capacity and will spill.”

Despite the high discharge numbers, Welsh Water emphasized the quality of its bathing waters and rivers:

“Wales has some of the best bathing waters in the UK and 44% of our rivers in Wales are in good ecological status compared to 14% in England. Over the next five years we’ll invest £2.5bn on projects to improve the environment, including £889m on investigating and improving storm overflows.”

The debate over sewage discharges is likely to continue, with environmental groups demanding greater accountability and faster action to protect Wales’ natural resources.