Wetland plan to cut down on sewage approved

The planned wetland at South Elmsall will use pond plants to treat storm water

Plans to create a wetland to reduce the amount of sewage discharged into a West Yorkshire beck have been approved.

Yorkshire Water will build the wetland at South Elmsall wastewater treatment works to help reduce storm overflow discharges into Frickley Beck, a tributary of the River Don.

The wetland is designed to treat storm flows using plants which break down pollutants during heavy and prolonged rainfall.

Wakefield Council approved the scheme, despite some objections from local residents over traffic, noise and the proximity of the development to homes on Caddon Avenue.

Interconnected ponds will stretch across an area the size of five football pitches, with 220,000 plants breaking down pollutants in the water as it passes through.

The wastewater being treated would not include solid waste, Yorkshire Water said.

It is hoped the wetland will increase biodiversity, with the project expected to take up to 18 months to complete.

Original plans for the development were redrawn after the Environment Agency said it was concerned about flooding, the Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS) said.

When the scheme was unveiled in January, Simon Hudson, the lead project manager, said it would “provide a range of benefits” for the local environment.

A planning officer’s report said: “The proposed development will bring about improvements to the operation of the existing wastewater treatment facility and by doing so deliver onsite biodiversity net gain with the creation of the wetland.”

The levels of sewage being discharged into England’s rivers and seas have led to increasing public anger, with Yorkshire Water saying it would invest £180m in reducing sewage leaks from storm overflows.

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