Southern Water spending £170m on reducing overflows

The water firm is investing £170m to upgrade Peel Common wastewater treatment works

A water company fined for dumping raw sewage into the sea has said work was under way for a scheme to reduce storm overflows.

Southern Water was hit with a £90m fine, four years ago, after raw sewage was discharged across Hampshire, West Sussex and Kent.

It said it was now spending £170m on upgrades to reduce the volume of rain and groundwater flowing into the sewage system in Portsmouth, Gosport and Fareham.

The firm has said if it only had to treat wastewater, there would be no need for overflows into the sea during periods of wet weather.

Keith Herbert said Southern Water needs to work to "win back the trust of customers"

During wet weather Peel Common wastewater treatment works cannot cope with the volume of water, which is why storm overflows containing untreated sewage end up in the sea, the firm explained.

Keith Herbert, of Southern Water, said: "I don't like it, we're in the 21st Century, we shouldn't do that.

"Storm overflows happen because of poor urban drainage - things like driveways, car parks, roads, roofs are contributing to the run-off into our system."

Mr Herbert said the firm needed to "win back the trust of our customers", as campaigners and politicians had been putting pressure on the firm to reduce untreated sewage outflows.

"I like to think projects like this will demonstrate to customers the bill increases they're seeing are going to be spent in the right areas," he said.

Bianca Carr, founder of the Final Straw Foundation, says she doesn't believe things are changing yet

The Final Straw Foundation was originally set up in Emsworth and highlights the impact of pollution on the environment.

Founder of the charity, Bianca Carr, said she was yet to be convinced change was happening.

"I feel like we've been burnt very hard by the company and I don't believe anything that's happening, I'm more of a I believe it when I see it person," she said.

In total, Southern Water is investing £1.5bn on its clean river and seas plan.

Mr Herbert added: "We're on the same page as our campaigners, we want the same thing.

"We want cleaner rivers and seas and we're going to work day and night to make sure that is the case."