Chichester MP raises concerns over dangerous sewage entering harbour
Gillian Keegan's been speaking with Southern Water on the issue
The MP for Chichester has met with Southern Water to discuss ongoing concerns about wastewater entering Chichester Harbour.
Gillian Keegan has been seeing what plans are in place to improve capacity in the system, with hundreds more home set to be built in the coming years as part of the district's Local Plan to 2035.
The meeting was designed, in part to learn more about the ongoing work of Southern Water to improve their performance and encourage a closer working relationship between the council and the company moving forward.
It was the MP’s second meeting on this issue in a matter of weeks, as at the end of 2020 she met with the CEO of the regulatory body, OFWAT, Rachel Fletcher, where the performance of Southern Water was discussed as well as the measures in place to encourage improvements.
Last year Southern Water was given the lowest possible environmental safety rating - one star out of four - by the Environment Agency, in part due to the large number of pollution incidents and leaks recorded in its region.
Gillian Keegan said:
“I am very grateful to Iain (MacAuley, chief executive of Southern Water) and his team for their time.
"It was good to hear that work is ongoing to both mitigate their environmental impacts and improve the overall system capacity. There is a huge amount more to do, and I hope this is the first of many meetings to ensure progress is made.
"Moving forward I will continue to work closely with the regulator, Environment Agency and Southern Water and press for closer cooperation between the council and the water company.”
Ms Keegan is also due to meet with the Environment Minister, Rebecca Pow, later this month along with other coastal MPs from the Solent region to collectively discuss the performance of Southern Water and look at the national approach to the issues faced in our area.
Southern Water has committed to making the following improvements in and around Chichester:
Investing £9.95m to upgrade Tangmere Wastewater Treatment Works, which now has the capacity to accommodate planned developments around Chichester city
A further £18.9m has go into building a pipeline and pumping stations, that will take wastewater from these new sites to Tangmere WTW.
UV treatment installed over the last 5-10 years on the storm overflow at Apuldram Wastewater Treatment Works and introduced conditions on our permit
An infiltration reduction programme which will help stop rainwater getting into our sewers and so reduce storm release is due to commence between 2020 and 2025.
After the meeting Chief Executive of Southern Water, Ian McAulay commented,
“Partnership working is the best and most effective way to ensure a resilient water future for the people of Chichester and the wider region.
"Delivering water resilience in a climate crisis and across the multiple environments water exists in, demands that many parties and stakeholders have to work more closely together than ever before.
"Having proactive and constructive partners such as Gillian Keegan MP ensures that we hear and understand the priorities of residents and stakeholders and in turn they hear and understand those of a water utility.
"Together we can then take the most effective action. We therefore look forward to widening and deepening our cooperation with Gillian Keegan and all the stakeholders in the Chichester area.”