Campaigners allege that raw sewage has been pumped into Thames, a popular spot for bathers.
Windrush Against Sewage Pollution, a group that monitors water quality in certain parts of the river, was formed to address concerns about water companies not properly being monitored.
They produced a video shot on January 12 near Cassington treatment works in Oxfordshire – run by Thames Water – which is said to show small fish swimming through untreated sewage upstream of the Port Meadow wild swimming spot.
Campaigners say raw sewage is being dumped into the Thames by bathers at a beauty spot (file photo).
An industry analysis revealed that water companies have illegally disposed of sewage treated at treatment plants into rivers more than 2,400 times over the past five years.
Thames Water states that Cassington Works has not discharged untreated sewerage since March 2021. Therefore, the video’s muck is likely to be sewage.
However, that explanation is dismissed by the Windrush group, which says the flow – whether deliberate or a leak – appears to be partially untreated sewage.
This is a swan searching for food in Windsor’s River Thames earlier this month. Thames Water reported that an assessment of the watercourse area on January 17 showed the river was in good health
Britain’s Victorian-era sewerage system is unable to cope with excessive rainwater. Water companies are allowed to release some of the sewage into rivers, in order not for treatment plants becoming overloaded.
According to environmentalists it’s happening too often.
Thames Water reported that an evaluation of the watercourse was done on January 17, and the river region was found to be in good health.
The long pipe which takes the effluent from the treatment plant to the river seems to have any problem. The final effluent pipe is a problem. We want to find out why.
Environment Agency stated that they were speaking with the company to discuss the video.