Severn Trent to install monitors to measure river sewage

Severn Trent was responsible for discharging sewage into rivers for 249,116 hours in 2022

Monitors to measure sewage going into the River Severn will be installed as part of a £24m scheme.

Work is expected to begin next year on installing 80 monitors at various Severn Trent sewage treatment sites.

They will check the amount of sewage being treated during storm conditions and provide readings every 15 minutes.

Shropshire residents have been critical about raw sewage being discharged into the river, with some refusing to pay part of their water bills in protest.

Companies are allowed to pump sewage into the water in exceptional circumstances - for example, during heavy rainfall - but they can be acting illegally if they do so when conditions are dry, or if they are not treating enough of the waste before releasing it.

Severn Trent said the monitors would check sewage was being treated and help ensure the storm overflow did not operate in dry weather conditions. A final list of sites is expected in June.

River health

Recent Environment Agency (EA) data showed water companies discharged sewage into rivers for 1.8 million hours in England last year, of which Severn Trent was responsible for 249,116 hours.

The monitors are part of a wider £95m investment by the water company given the green light by Defra, Ofwat and the EA to bring forward schemes which were due to start in 2025.

Others include increasing water capacity by 6% at Draycote Water reservoir in Warwickshire at a cost of £70m and rolling out 250,000 smart meters.

Severn Trent said the investment in the treatment works would help improve the health of the river.

A spokesperson added: "We also have a Shrewsbury-based Severn Trent River Ranger who, along with our operational teams, proactively monitors the network and river health on a daily basis.

"Severn Trent is moving faster than sector targets to improve the quality of the region's rivers, including those around Shrewsbury."

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