One fishing coach described his life as a “sewer tape measure” every time he enters the rivers around Greater Manchester because they are so polluted with human feces, rats and toilet waste.
Andy Beeman, a fishing guide from Lee, Greater Manchester, paints a grim picture of waterways littered with everything from underwear, pads and tissues to food waste and syringes.
He spends a lot of time on the rivers between Manchester, Lee and his native Yorkshire, whether it’s fishing, kayaking, wildlife photography or surfing in the summer. “Pollution in Yorkshire was quite strong. But when I moved to Greater Manchester a year ago, the problem became incredible – it’s just terrible, ”he said. I.
“I see everything from raw sewage or feces to sanitary pads, wet wipes and toilet paper, as well as syringes and needles. Thousands of sanitary napkins are washed out of the sewer system into some streams in the Lee area. And when the rivers overflow, they all along the banks of the rivers.
“Every river and stream I visit is the same,” he said. “As a frequent water user, I feel like I am playing channel roulette with my life every time I go into the water.
“Many rats feed on the visible raw sewage and food waste that is dumped into our rivers and streams. Rat populations are rapidly increasing, which is affecting other wildlife.”
Greater Manchester is especially bad, he said, for streams that connect to the Manchester Ship Canal, which then flows downstream into the River Mersey and the sea around North Wales. He added that the most polluted streams in the Lee area are Glaze Brook, Pennington Brook and Westley Brook.
Mr Beeman said he did not get sick from the water thanks to a combination of luck and caution, but he has heard many cases of sickness from people and pets.
“Local children get sick after playing and swimming in streams and rivers open to the general public during the summer months,” he said. “There is a very real public health risk of contracting the disease through river water.
“Dogs that swim and enter rivers and streams get sick. In some cases, after drinking sewage-contaminated water, dogs have died from the chemicals in the sewage. I’m afraid to let my dogs swim and drink from my local rivers and streams and not let them get back into the water.
While these cases of illness, dogs, and children have not been proven to be water related, sewage is known to infect people and pets, and these cases are consistent with similar reports across the country.
“The pleasure of being on the rivers and participating in sports and recreational activities has been replaced by a fear of persistent diseases caused by bacteria and sewage-borne diseases.
“I have seen amphibians, fish and birds such as kingfishers rapidly decline. Invertebrate species that feed larger animals further up the food chain have also declined.
“I’m scared and nervous touching water with my bare hands and now I sanitize my waders regularly.”
United Utilities is the water company responsible for rivers and streams in Greater Manchester. A spokesman said: “We have ambitious plans to implement one of the largest environmental programs in the country. We are pleased to now be able to get an early start on this investment of over £900m, of which £400m was spent in Greater Manchester.
“These investments will benefit the entire region by reducing storm surges, creating jobs and increasing the resilience of local people and the environment.
“We have also hired several river rangers who will be stationed on the banks of the rivers in Greater Manchester to monitor the quality of the river water and clean up debris – no matter how it got there.”
The company said it was already implementing a number of water quality improvement projects in the Glaze Brook, Pennington Brook and Westley Brook, Mr Beeman mentioned. These projects cost over £38 million and are due to be completed next year.
Rivers, canals, coastal areas and other waterways in England and Wales experienced 375,000 sewage discharges totaling 2.3 million hours in 2022, according to an analysis by Top of the Poops.
Surfers Against Sewage (SAS), a charity that fights the problem in rivers and coastal areas, received 720 sickness reports in the year to October 2022. Approximately 39 per cent of these communications concerned warnings about wastewater discharges in the region. The SAS also conducted a survey in May 2022 which found that 55% of Britons who bathed in UK rivers and coastal waters said they had at least one illness afterwards.
However, the Open Swimming Society said the threat was exaggerated. When they surveyed their members in 2022, they recorded a total of 1.85 million swimming attempts worldwide, with 207 cases attributed to water quality. It was one case among 9094 swimmers.
But Mr Beeman said both the government and the public should take action to clean up polluted rivers, arguing that water companies that dump untreated sewage into watercourses should be fined.
“The government should change legislation to prevent sewage and chemical pollution. They need to give the EPA the ability to effectively investigate and punish water companies,” he said. “Vodokanals should be fined by the Environmental Protection Agency and the government for dumping raw sewage into our streams, rivers and oceans.
“Water users and the general public should support environmentally conscious groups such as the Angling Trust, Activist Anglers and Surfers Against Sewage.”
Itogether with New scientistlaunched the Save British Rivers campaign to save the country’s polluted waterways.
A spokesman for regulator Water UK said: “Water companies fully agree on the urgent need to
Action is needed to bring about the change we all want to see in our rivers. The industry is already investing heavily in storm surge emergency response, and increased monitoring means it can direct spending where it’s needed most.”
An EPA spokesperson said: “Providing clean and abundant water is a priority for the EPA. We continue to hold polluters accountable, and in 2021 our prosecutions resulted in record fines. We are conducting the largest criminal investigation to date into water discharges by utilities.
“The challenges facing our waters are complex and will take time, money and cooperation to solve. Water management, farmers and many others will have to do their part.”
Source: I News
I’m Raymond Molina, a professional writer and journalist with over 5 years of experience in the media industry. I currently work for 24 News Reporters, where I write for the health section of their news website. In my role, I am responsible for researching and writing stories on current health trends and issues. My articles are often seen as thought-provoking pieces that provide valuable insight into the state of society’s wellbeing.