December Newsletter: What's been happening lately?

March for Clean Water

SOS Volunteers at the Clean Water March

SOS members attended the March for Clean Water in London on 3rd November. Hilary Plews, SOS Campaign Member, had this to say about the experience:

'Very heartening to be among so many committed water campaigners. Hope those now in power watching the coverage of the march recognise the strength of feeling up and down the country. People want this mess sorted. It's the Government's job to sort it. No dithering, no tinkering. Just sort it or massively haemorrhage good will and trust that you can change anything.'

SOS Seminar

Sunday 24th November

SOS held a seminar attended by 30 participants on Sunday 24th. The purpose was to celebrate the group's achievements over the past year, to thank all volunteers and to invite discussion on the direction of the group in the coming year.

Deborah Meara and Keith Thomas both presented and there was light entertainment provided by Rantin' Richie. After the break the group got together to discuss the outlined objectives and to offer their views on what should be a priority for 2025. The seminar input will be summarised and shared in our next newsletter.

Take Action!

Designated Bathing Water Status: DEFRA Consultation deadline 23rd December 2025

The Government has launched a consultation to reform Bathing Water Regulations. The old legislation is not fit for purpose and radical change is needed.

There are five main areas in the consultation. Please see our views on these in italics below.

Expanding the definition of 'bathers' to include all water users. Anyone using the water can potentially ingest the water. All are at risk if the water is polluted. There is no difference between someone who swims, paddles or uses a kayak: all water users should be counted.

Removing fixed bathing season dates. If people use the waterway recreationally all year then designation should reflect this.

Introducing multiple monitoring points to better classify water quality. Monitoring points must reflect the points where the water users access the river and take into account the CSO's and any other sources of pollution along the designated stretch.

Removing automatic de-designation for sites that get 'poor' for 5 years. There should NOT be automatic de-designation after 5 years of receiving a 'poor' water quality standard. Ilkley have shown that designation and access to the OFWAT Accelerator programme means infrastructure can be secured to achieve safe water. This can take outside of the 5 years. Extending this, however, potentially means reduced motivation and urgency to clean up the water and an extended risk to people and wildlife.

Deciding if it is feasible to improve a site's water quality to at least 'sufficient', and using that as a criterion for final designation. We feel this is a get out clause: all waterways should be at least sufficient and the starting point should be to achieve that and continue to improve.

Please complete the online survey before December 23rd by clicking the button below.

Have Your Say Here

Surfers Against Sewage petition

We've had the message below from Surfers Against Sewage: please consider signing their petition:

"We urgently need your help.

Because of your campaigning, the government is taking the first legal steps to clean up our rivers, lakes and seas, by introducing the Water (Special Measures) Bill. Thank you.

But there's a huge risk that this new law, which is passing through parliament right now, will leave billpayers and taxpayers on the hook for paying off water company debts and shareholders. 😲🤬

Yes! We must ban the bailouts!

We're working non-stop behind the scenes to persuade Keir Starmer to amend this fundamentally flawed bill, but we need to show that the public demand this change too.

For all us water-lovers, this cause really is a three-line whip. Will you sign this urgent petition today?

I've heard enough, I want to act!

Profiting from pollution must never be permitted, let alone be enshrined in law.

And that's why we are also calling for government to use this Bill to abolish Ofwat's farcical duty to deliver profits for water company shareholders (yes, Deborah, that's really what they are legally obliged to do), and replace it with a legal duty to protect the environment and public health.

This is an urgent call. We really need your support. Please take 30 seconds to sign the petition, and help us outlaw profiting from pollution

Sign the petition

For the full lowdown on what we're calling for, and why, head to the petition page now, and scroll down to the FAQs section.

Thanks for your support ✊🌊

For the ocean,

Team SAS"

How to buy water-friendly products

Choosing less polluting and more sustainable products, and then disposing of them safely, can help keep our seas and rivers clean. From plastics to chemicals and pharmaceuticals, this article from Which? magazine will help you choose well.

Find Out More

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Shout Out To:

SOS would like to thank Richmond Town Council for their public support of our campaign. The resolution, proposed by Councillor World and seconded by Councillor Harris was discussed at the September meeting and recorded as follows in the council minutes:

RESOLVED: to express support for both self-designation of bathing water status and the DEFRA application (once opened) for the River Swale in Richmond.

Also a huge thank you to Ian Woods who has donated £150 to SOS from his Mayor's Charity Fund 2023/2024. SOS is completely independent of any funding from water companies, the regulators etc, donations such as this really help us achieve the work we do.

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Dates for the Diary

• 19th January: RICAP are holding an Eco Fair from 09.30am-12.30pm at Richmond School. The event will focus on local environmental issues and SOS are delighted to have a stall there. Come along and say hello!

• The next Water Quality Monitoring Session is Sunday 26th Jan. More detail will follow in a separate email to all WQM volunteers.

October Newsletter; What's been happening lately?

Please be aware that the March for Clean Water which was originally going to be on Saturday 26th October has been rearranged to Sunday 3rd November.

March For Clean Water, London, 3rd November at 11am

Please let us know if you plan to attend as soon as possible so we can arrange to link up on Albert Embankment by 11am.

Sewage Campaign Network

Save Our Swale have joined this campaign group. Who are they? In their own words:

“We are grassroots campaigners deeply rooted in our local communities, working to save our rivers, lakes, and seas from sewage pollution. As the founders of the current massive public storm, our coalition consists of the forerunners in the fight against sewage pollution—passionate community members dedicated to safeguarding rivers, lakes, and coastlines.

We have not been captured – we don’t take money from government, regulators or the water companies; we are truly independent. We take pride in our integrity.

To save our local waters, we’ve had to step up to challenge the entire water system, campaigning to get the law enforced. We are also mobilising hundreds of community campaign groups like ours, providing briefings and educational sessions, and supporting the practicalities of water testing, campaigning and lobbying.

Each group within the network operates independently, but we speak as one, channelling the public's outrage at pollution for profit.”

Find out more here

A year of Water Quality Monitoring

For the last year (September 2023 – September 2024) average coliform counts in the River Swale continued to be well above the Bathing Water Status level of 1000 counts per 100 ml.

66% percent of samples taken exceeded this level. In samples taken in the urban locations of Richmond and Brompton, 73% failed this test.

At Station Bridge, the average coliform count was 12 times what it should be. These are dangerously high levels.

Water Quality Monitoring continues on a monthly basis. Thank you, volunteers. On request further analysis has been conducted in Gilling West and Colburn Beck. Both sites recorded high levels of coliform contamination. For example in September at Gilling Beck by the Bridge, the coliform count was 65 times what it should have been. The Environment Agency have been involved and we await their response.

River Monitoring for Invertebrates

Stonefly larva

SOS arose out of public concern about sewage being discharged into the Swale, and to hold Yorkshire Water to account, as the body responsible. In spring 2024 it was proposed to the SOS committee that a group be created to look at river invertebrates to support SOS’s chemical sampling of Swale water.

Sampling equipment was bought, with support from private donors, the Quakers and Brompton-on-Swale Parish Council. This, and affiliation with the RiverFly Partnership (a network of organisations encouraging citizen scientists to monitor invertebrate life in their rivers), convinced the Environment Agency to approve the group to sample five sites from Brompton-on-Swale to Round Howe.

RiverFly uses eight species of larvae as indicators for clean inland water bodies. Like lichen, these larvae are sensitive to pollution. Data are collected by groups like SOS from around Britain. The data, following standard collecting protocol, go into a national database, Cartographer. In the Swale, testing began at the end of July, and conscientiously followed the RiverFly sampling protocol; this involved standing in the river and vigorously kicking for three minutes! The intended effect was to dislodge the minuscule larvae from their rocky hiding places and into the collecting nets. The low numbers of larvae found seemed to confirm the pollution levels found in the SOS’s chemical sampling.

However, and this is a big however, two knowledgeable anglers in the group suggested that vigorous kicking actually risked killing the delicate larvae! Gentler kicking was tried, and the larval catch increased exponentially.

From Spring 2025 the SOS invertebrate group will once again be supporting SOS in holding Yorkshire Water to account through collecting larval data from our five sites, though this time we will be kick sampling more gently as we seek to understand the nature of the Swale and its lifeforms and the impact pollution has on it.

Jason Sartin sampling

hand sampling for invertebrates

How can you know when sewage has been dumped in the River Swale?

You can check when the Combined Sewer Overflows (CSOs) have been opened to dump raw sewage by going to this Yorkshire Water Storm Overflow Map and searching results for Richmond North Yorkshire.

Why is this important?

Volunteers doing Invertebrate monitoring reported a repulsive experience when monitoring for invertebrates last month.

The river was fast flowing, medium high and foul smelling. The stench was very, very unpleasant. When they went on the website which shows when the storm overflows are open to dump sewage directly into the river, it was found that the CSO at Riverside Road was opened on the 8th September for 1 hour 13 minutes. We don't know what volume of sewage was dumped on that day. The CSOs on the Batts, Lombards Wynd and the Rugby field dumped on the 9th of September for varying amounts of time with no record of the volume of sewage dumped at each site. We were sampling on the 10th September! Analysis of the water sample from that day indicated E. coli counts of 9,750 cells per 100ml, which is nearly 10 times higher than it should be.

There had been heavy rainfall 48 hours before. That is why it is really important to wait over 48 hours from any rainfall before entering the river. For example, after the recent rainfall on 16th October, raw sewage dumping into the Swale has occurred at Reeth Road, Riverside Road, Lombards Wynd, The Richmond Baths and Rugby Field CSO sites for anything from 1 minute duration to 2.5 hours. The CSO at the Batts is not registering when raw sewage is being dumped. That does not mean it is not being dumped, just that we are not able to know when or for how long. Yorkshire Water are looking into it! You can see all this reported by clicking the red button below:

Storm Overflow Map

Spreading the Word

Save Our Swale took part in the Rivers Trust Open Day in October held at Gilling West Hall. It was great to meet members of the public and other groups all working to improve our rivers and make them healthy for wildlife and recreation.

Flyer for Rivers Trust Open Day

Dates for the diary

• March for Clean Water, London, now 3rd November: for more info, see the top of the newsletter.

• Water Quality Monitoring: the next dates are 27th October & 24th November.

September Update; What’s been happening lately?

(Self) Designation of Bathing Water Status

As has been previously mentioned, DEFRA has deferred all applications for bathing water status until 2025. Save Our Swale (SOS) has almost 12 months of water quality monitoring data highlighting the state of the pollution in the Swale. Particularly concerning are those sites along the Swale regularly used for bathing, paddling, etc. With this in mind, SOS has taken the decision to self-designate these sites and to install signage which will advise all river users of any potential risks. The signage is in the final stages of the design phase, after which funding for production and installation will be secured.

Bathers at Richmond Falls this summer. Would they swim if they knew the state of the water?

Richmond Sewage Treatment Works

In August, SOS carried out testing and analysis for phosphates and bacteria both upstream of Richmond Sewage Treatment Works (STW) and downstream of the treatment works outflow pipe (the point at which treated sewage is released into the river). On 5th August, SOS recorded its highest count of coliform (including E. coli) which was noted at an astronomical 760,000 cells per 100ml. This reading was taken downstream of the STW outflow pipe (i.e. after the water was supposed to be treated).

We are aware of an issue earlier in the year of an overflowing inlet screen at the STW. We also understand that 16% of STWs have ‘operational issues’ and have written to Yorkshire Water to question whether the Richmond STW is compliant.

Richmond sewage treatment works overflowing

Ofwat fines Yorkshire Water £47m

Ofwat has fined Yorkshire Water £47m for failing to manage its treatment works and operating 45% of its storm overflows in breach of permit. A pretty damning failure by any standard. In addition to this, Yorkshire Water was downgraded in its environmental performance by the Environment Agency, and allocated just two out of four stars. It is also currently rated red after five serious pollution incidents.

Despite the fact that CEO Nicola Shaw heads up a company which is currently classified as operating ‘significantly below target’, she received a £371,000 bonus on top of her £657,000 salary for the year ending March 2024. Nice work, if you can get it…

Ofwat: Fit for Purpose?

Given the recent investigations and fines issued against Yorkshire Water, is Ofwat currently in a position to hold water companies to account?

At the July 2024 ‘Your Water, Your Say’ Q&A session with Ofwat, Save Our Swale asked the following question of CEO David Black:

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Q: Do you feel confident that Ofwat has the regulatory capacity to monitor what these companies are doing with the money they get and the investment they receive, given their opaque financial circumstances?

A: ‘We are mindful of this. We have seen a massive step up in investment and so we will need to increase our resources and level of scrutiny. At the moment we are engaging with the Government. We will work with the Environment Agency to make sure that companies are held to account to deliver on this investment.’

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Whilst these are encouraging words, the fact remains that Ofwat, in its current form, does not have the capacity to transparently scrutinise water company spending. As such, it cannot be an effective regulator.

Spreading the Word

Save Our Swale was delighted to present at an event organised by Sustainable Swaledale to share SOS’s campaign objectives and summary of analysis. The event was also a fundraiser for Sustainable Swaledale who very generously shared 50% of the amount raised with Save Our Swale. A huge thank you to them!

In August, SOS presented to Richmond Town Council to update councillors on SOS water quality monitoring analysis and campaign objectives. Feedback was very positive, with a number of councillors offering verbal support. The key points will be discussed and voted on by the Council at the September meeting.

Take Action!

March for Clean Water in London on the 26th October.

Some of us from SOS will be attending this event. More information via the link:

https://marchforcleanwater.org/

If you are thinking of attending, please get in touch as we are looking into the possibility of organising a group rail ticket.

Send your MP a Postcard!

This is a Friends of the Earth campaign to alert your MP to the thing that needs fixing to create a healthy environment where you live. Please take this opportunity to alert Rishi Sunak to the issues of pollution on the Swale:

Click here to be taken to the Friends of the Earth website.

Dates for the Diary

• Gilling West, 5th October 1-4pm: Yorkshire Dales Rivers Trust are hosting their annual open day in Gilling West. There’ll be talks, demos, a guided river walk, and the Rivers2U mobile lab and classroom will be there! SOS will be supporting this event and hosting a stall, so please do come along to chat with us about what’s happening to the River Swale.

• March for Clean Water, London, 26th October: For more info, see the Take Action section above.

• Water Quality Monitoring: The next dates are 29th September & 27th October.