Britain's environment minister on Saturday defended government plans to tackle sewage releases into rivers and sea, after opposition parties and environmentalists slammed the measures as insufficient and costly for consumers.

Recent discharges of sewage into popular river and sea bathing areas have prompted widespread horror among the public, as well as alarm over waters shared with the EU.

The European Commission said Thursday it will soon reply to complaints received from MEPs about British sewage allegedly being poured into waters shared with the EU.

The UK government on Friday announced the "toughest targets ever" for water companies, requiring them to invest 56 billion pounds ($66 billion) over 25 years to improve infrastructure such as storm overflows.

Some of that cost will be passed onto customers through bills.

Storm channels are conduits used during heavy rain to prevent sewers becoming overfull. Some untreated waste water goes directly into watercourses or the sea.

George Eustice, the environment secretary, told BBC radio that the current government was the first to "really grip" the problems connected to the "Victorian sewage infrastructure".

"You could argue that governments down the decades should have prioritised this, but this government -- with me as Secretary of State, and Boris Johnson as Prime Minister -- is the first government to actually tackle this problem," Eustice said.

Opposition parties and experts have criticised the plans, however.

The Rivers Trust, a charity that protects waterways, said the plan was "too little, too late".

Environment spokesman for the Liberal Democratic Party, Tim Farron, called it a "cruel joke", saying water companies were rewarding chief executives and shareholders while "we swim in sewage".

Related Links
Our Polluted World and Cleaning It Up

Tweet

Thanks for being here; We need your help. The SpaceDaily news network continues to grow but revenues have never been harder to maintain. With the rise of Ad Blockers, and Facebook - our traditional revenue sources via quality network advertising continues to decline. And unlike so many other news sites, we don't have a paywall - with those annoying usernames and passwords. Our news coverage takes time and effort to publish 365 days a year. If you find our news sites informative and useful then please consider becoming a regular supporter or for now make a one off contribution.
SpaceDaily Contributor $5 Billed Once credit card or paypal		SpaceDaily Monthly Supporter $5 Billed Monthly paypal only

Dead fish and depression on the banks of the Oder
Cigacice, Poland (AFP) Aug 27, 2022
Appearing tired and stressed, Piotr Wloch looks out dejectedly at his empty tourist boats on the Oder river after an environmental disaster that has killed thousands of fish. Like many local businesses, Wloch has seen bookings plunge by 90 percent following the as yet unexplained catastrophe on the lush banks of a river between Poland and Germany. "I'm just starting to realise the scale of what happened," Wloch told AFP. "Yesterday, I slept all day because I was depressed, unable to move," h ... read more