Calls for action over 62 hour sewage release
Data shows wastewater including sewage was allowed to flow into the River Ure starting on Saturday, January 25
Environmental campaigners and councillors have called for urgent action after sewage was discharged into a Yorkshire Dales river for more than two days solid.
Data shows wastewater including sewage was allowed to flow into the River Ure near Leyburn for at least 62 hours last week, starting on Saturday, January 25.
Campaigners say the incident was just one of many in the area caused by a sewage system in need of urgent investment.
Campaign group Stop Ure Pollution was formed to protect the river and its tributaries.
Vice chair Toby Milbank said many of the sewerage treatment plants along the River Ure required significant investment.
“Within the Ure catchment, there are some treatment plants that overspill very regularly.
“The worst performing plant along the river is at Leyburn that overspilled untreated sewage into the river for over 3,000 hours on 213 separate days of last year.”
Details of the discharge come as Yorkshire Water (YW) prepares to hike customers’ bills by almost a third from April.
The rise will take the average water and wastewater bill in the county from £467 to £602 – a 29 per cent increase.
Mr Milbank added: “The issue is that within the Yorkshire Water region, there are 631 treatment plants, and the funds required to upgrade the plants have been mis-invested or paid to shareholders.
“The infrastructure has not received the investment it requires, during a period when population growth has increased, new houses have been built, and the plants simply cannot cope with the amount of waste we produce.”
Councillor Karin Sedgwick, who represents Leyburn on North Yorkshire Council, urged Yorkshire Water to tackle the issue in her area.
“It’s awful that this has been allowed to happen and keeps happening. Yorkshire Water needs to do all it can to prevent this from occurring.”
A YW spokesperson said: “In this instance, the storm overflow at Leyburn wastewater treatment works discharged according to its permit and as a result of rainfall in the area.
“However, we understand that any discharge from a storm overflow is concerning for our customers and are committed to reducing them.”
The company said it had started a £180m programme of investment into storm overflows before April this year, and would be spending a further £1.5bn between April 2025 and 2030.
“This includes a project at Leyburn wastewater treatment works, which we are currently in the planning stages for,” the spokesperson added.
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