Rivers: Surrey
The question
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether his Department has made an assessment of the potential impact of sewage spills on biodiversity in rivers in Surrey.
Answered by Emma Hardy
For too long, water companies have discharged unacceptable levels of sewage into our rivers, lakes and seas.
The Environment Agency assesses all reported sewage spills, considering impacts on water quality and ecology. For significant incidents, it may carry out enhanced monitoring, such as fish mortality counts and invertebrate surveys. Routine ecological monitoring across Surrey catchments, supported by Citizen Science, helps track river health, with targeted investigations used where deterioration is detected.
As part of Price Review 24, Thames Water will undertake significant investment programme to improve the environment over the 2025-30 period. This includes £740.31 million to reduce storm overflow use and £1.2 billion to prevent nutrient pollution. Ofwat expects reduction of the storm overflows use by at least 29% over the next five years.
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