Tougher measures on water companies welcome but Blackpool Council accused of going in circles
PLUS: Jacob Epstein and the history of his work showcased in Blackpool
Hello and welcome to The Blackpool Lead.
Today we report on an issue that has rarely been far from our pages - that of raw sewage being pumped into Blackpool’s sea and what action is or isn’t happening as a result.
While tougher powers to tackle water bosses - introduced by the government rather than locally - have been welcomed, campaigners continued to be dissatisfied with the conversations being had by Blackpool Council to tackle the issue.
We also have our second history piece - this time by Robert Leach - for paying subscribers to The Blackpool Lead.
Thank you for reading as always. Remember you can get in touch at blackpool@thelead.uk with anything you think we should be reporting on.
By Luke Beardsworth & Shelagh Parkinson
Tougher powers which could see water company bosses jailed if they do not tackle pollution have been welcomed by Blackpool South MP Chris Webb.
The Water (Special Measures) Bill has been introduced to Parliament and will give regulators stronger tools to take enforcement action with.
Webb has been campaigning for change since his election last May, highlighting the impact of sewage discharges on the quality of bathing waters in Blackpool.
He said: “Blackpool’s beaches should be a huge source of pride for residents, who should be able to reap all the benefits of our greatest natural asset. Their pollution not only threatens our health but our wellbeing and sense of local pride.”
Webb says pollution warnings were issued across Blackpool’s beaches for 59 days last year and during September “there wasn’t a single safe day. ” This meant for almost 40 per cent of Blackpool’s summer season, the sea was “unsafe for locals and visitors to enjoy.”
United Utilities says over the next five years it will spend more than £13bn in the North West to improve the quality of water in rivers and seas and tackle leakage.
A spokesperson said: “Thanks to recent schemes like the Anchorsholme Park storage tank and the new pumping station and long sea outfall, the impact of storm water has been dramatically reduced along the coast.”
The new Water Bill will create tougher penalties, including imprisonment, for water executives when companies fail to co-operate or obstruct investigations into incidents of pollution.
It will also ban the payment of bonuses to water bosses if they fail to protect the environment, their consumers and their company’s finances. Regulators will also be able to issue penalties more quickly and introduce independent monitoring.
Webb said: “Under this Labour Government, water executives will no longer line their own pockets whilst pumping out this filth. If they refuse to comply, they could end up in the dock and face prison time.
“This Bill is a major step forward in our wider reform to fix the broken water system. The Labour Government will outline further legislation to fundamentally transform how the water industry is run and speed up the delivery of upgrades to our sewage infrastructure to clean up our waterways for good.”
A United Utilities spokesperson said: “The North West coastline has seen billions of pounds of investment over the last 30 years, and we are now able to store and treat more wastewater than ever before.”
The company said it is working with partners “to improve our rivers and coasts and to tackle all factors that can affect water quality.”
The spokesperson added: “We are now able to progress with what will be the largest investment in water and wastewater infrastructure in the North West for over 100 years.
“This historic investment will deliver the step change that customers have told us they want to see and allow us to safeguard drinking water supplies, help reduce leakage and sewer flooding and protect and enhance more than 500km of rivers and bathing waters across the North West region.”
Why aren’t volunteers being utilised?
The most recent meeting of Blackpool Council’s Climate Change and Environment Scrutiny Committee saw Blackpool Council accused of ‘going round in circles’.
John Blackledge, director of community and environmental services, said it would be better to get more up-to-date information on the quality of the resort’s bathing water and that Defra and the Environment Agency are now reviewing the framework used.
But Fylde Coast Against Sewage have been offering to carry out the testing outside of the May-September bathing season window and have so far not heard back from the council.
In the meeting, Blackledge said that ‘most of the time’ the bathing water in Blackpool is good and that United Utilities have spent millions to protect beaches.
But Dr Barbara Kneale, of Fylde Coast Against Sewage, rejects this, telling The Blackpool Lead: “Blackpool Council appear to be going round in circles, bringing up the same old excuses, defending United Utilities when in fact they should be considering the health and wellbeing of the local residents and tourists rather than worrying about United Utilities financial management.”
The meeting also heard that pollution is caused by a number of factors including waste from dogs and birds along with agricultural waste.
However, data from Surfers Against Sewage showed that in 2024 the majority of beaches along the Fylde Coast had sewage alerts at a rate greater than one per week.
Dr Kneale added: “Pollution can be from various sources but our view is that releasing raw human sewage into the sea on a regular basis is the main culprit. Common sense dictates that to have a significant impact on our water quality the practice of sewage overflows on a regular basis has to stop - just look at the number of alerts.”
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Thanks for reading. We will be back with you on Sunday and hope you enjoy the rest of your week.
Luke, Ed, Mike, Jamie, Sophie and all the team.