Piddle Valley homes facing 24 hour pumping to remove groundwater
Wessex Water are working to prevent the sewer system from being overwhelmed
Residents in the Piddle Valley are having to live with 24-hour pumping close to their homes.
Piddletrenthide and Piddlehinton are both being affected as Wessex Water removes rainwater and groundwater from the sewer network, pumping it into the river.
The situation has been similar in Sydling St Nicholas where village streets have flooded several times this year, including with items which have obviously come from toilets.
In both Piddletrenthide and Piddlehinton the pumps are connected into the sewer which runs down the valley from Alton Pancras with the pipes then discharging into the Piddle, one of the country’s most valuable chalk streams.
Both pipes have their end point in the stream covered by mesh to trap any solid material, with wet wipes visible at the pump site in Church Lane, Piddletrenthide.
Ian Condon, who lives just yards from the pump, set up alongside an ancient bridge, said:
“They say it's not sewerage which is going into the stream but where this comes from, via systems connected to homes, there must be some and even if it’s only a small percentage for such a valuable stream that can’t be good.”
He has written to the Environment Agency and West Dorset MP Chris Loder about the issue, saying that resident in the valley should not have to put up with the situation:
“This pump will be here now for weeks and weeks… over the last ten years or so I would say we have the same situation for about half of those years and although they try and shield the pumps you can hear the noise, especially at night.
“The pumping creates a constant background noise in the locality and must be very disturbing for those properties nearby. In addition to the noise pollution there’s air pollution created by the diesel-powered pumps.”
Chalk Valleys ward councillor on Dorset Council, Jill Haynes, said that Wessex Water should investigate the problems in all three villages and come up with a solution:
“It’s got to the stage where this isn’t exceptional – it’s almost every year now and much of what has been flowing into a ditch, and then into the streets when that backs up, is disgusting.
“People are paying for a service they simply aren’t getting. We know we’ve got a problem when the toilets won’t flush.”
Cllr Haynes said that some of the problems might be attributed to some householders wrongly connecting their rainwater system directly into the sewage pipes. or the possibility that underground pipes have become damage, or that the diameter of some pipes is not big enough:
“We need an investigation by Wessex Water and then some investment."
Wessex Water say that their solution is known as an Operational Mitigation Action Plan, permitted by the Environment Agency which prevents flooding and avoids having to restrict toilet use at properties connected to sewers that have become overwhelmed by excessive volumes.
The Piddle Valley has had a high flood risk alert in place since the rainy period in November.
Said a Wessex Water spokesperson:
“We’re removing rainwater and groundwater from sewers to protect properties from flooding, as permitted by the Environment Agency when prolonged rainfall leads to exceptionally high groundwater levels.
“Temporary pumps remove water from sewers and discharge it into nearby watercourses, with regular sampling carried out to ensure there is no environmental impact. Doing this also means customers’ toilet use isn’t restricted.
“We continue to monitor the situation and will stop the pumps running as soon as groundwater levels and the flooding risk recedes.”