Pollution is up 60%

[marmaladeandpeanutbutter]

Serious water pollution incidents are up 60%, according to the Environment Agency. Shouldn’t our leaders do something about it?

Yes, make directors personally liable. Stopped construction industry unacceptable practices when that changed.

Governments and the regulator work hand in hand to assist the water industry in mal practice.

Look at the latest changes, introduced by Labour, weak beyond belief, removed bonuses, so CEO's now see pay increases instead, no CEO will see a court room.

The Tories allowed profits to go to shareholders instead of investment, planning laws allowed housing building to continue with no regard to water treatment services.
The current Govt is allowing this to continue, such is the rush to build.

I agree. It’s outrageous, and will cause irreparable damage.

It might help if Ofwat wasn't staffed by former (or soon to be) managers of the water companies.

The news has just announced that OFWAT is to be abolished and replaced. That was quick!

They should be in prison, in my view. But, no, they're still getting bonuses instead.

I heard it was a strong possibility, there is a review to be published on Monday.

But either way, without a change in who owns the water companies, the bill payer will be expected to pay for the invest... again... whilst CEOs pay them selves 100s of 1000s to run a simple monopoly.

What's happened with Thames is that they've been happily polluting our lakes and rivers while pocketing cash. They didn't invest in infrastructure, just funnelled money to fat cats. Apparently no one noticed.

Wasn't it worse when Ray Davis wrote Waterloo sunset? Up 60% compared to when?

(my group) tries to get the spillage data and we can't (even though we are partners with UKHSa). I'm not sure anyone has good quality data. Open water swimmers I know say they hear there is an alert on their local overflow point, they go look, it hasn't overflown. The "overflow" sensors are faulty near them.

I can't comment with any knowledge on regulations or profiteering, but am pretty sure the datasets are mostly rubbish to figure out what's actually happened. Even harder to figure out if health risks are changing.

I hope that better river and coastal water quality happens on back of current political interest, but I wouldn't trust any headline about recent increase or not in pollution.

All true!

Oh well. Thats a pity. Less than I’d anticipated, from the reports earlier in the news.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c4g8m8r6grzo

Very weak reforms, no nationalisation, no curbs on boardroom pay as "we have to attract the top people for the job..." to run a local monopoly... where they can charge whatever they like.... laughable.

Terms of reference/report could have been written by the Conservatives.

Lipstick on a pig, apparently!

Steve Read says "the new regulator will be on the side on the consumer, the investor and the environment..."

Oh really? at least 2 of those are at loggerheads with other.

Lipstick on pig indeed.

Nail. Head.

It’s really worrying, I agree. 🙁
sorry state of the world