United Utilities work to improve sewage spills

Details on United Utilities work to improve sewage spills

Transcript

00:00It's been announced that United Utilities, which is the group which looks after water

00:05across the North West, is investing £10.6 million in a programme to increase the capacity

00:11at 29 rural waste waterworks across the region. Six of them will be in Lancashire. The idea

00:18is that it will reduce the amount of times that sewage is put into our waterworks during

00:23heavy rainfall. It comes as United Utilities have been criticised over the amount of raw

00:29sewage that is going into rivers and streams and seas in our area. Take a look at this

00:37United Utilities video to find out exactly what is happening in your area and what is

00:42being done to improve the situation.

00:49The health of our rivers is important to us all, whether that is for the people who live

00:53nearby or those who use rivers to enjoy recreational activities. Improving river water quality

00:58has been a priority for United Utilities for decades. Here in Liverpool, I am standing

01:03on top of our £200m extension to the city's waste water treatment works, continuing our

01:09investment programme to improve the River Mersey that began here over 30 years ago.

01:15Investment like this has made a significant contribution to the transformation of the

01:18city's waterfront, supporting its economic renaissance by making it an attractive place

01:23to invest. In March 2022, we published 30 commitments to kick-start a river revival

01:30over the next three years. Better Rivers, Better North West is a four-point plan setting

01:35out our commitments to make sure our operations progressively reduce impact to river health,

01:42to be open and transparent about our performance and plans, to make rivers beautiful and support

01:48others to improve and care for them, and to create more opportunities for everyone to

01:52enjoy rivers and waterways. Between 2020 and 2025, we are investing £230m from our

02:01base programme to support a one-third sustainable reduction in the number of spills recorded

02:06from our storm overflows by 2025. In May 2022, we also committed to invest a further £250m

02:14over and above this allowance to improve environmental outcomes, including support for our Better

02:19Rivers programme. Ensuring the quality of the water that we all want in rivers cannot

02:24be achieved by United Utilities on its own. There are many other factors that contribute

02:28to the health of our rivers and waterways, and we all need to work together to reduce

02:33their impact. For example, how can we work with farmers on reducing nutrient run-off

02:38from fields into rivers, and what can developers do to better manage rainfall and slow the

02:43flow of water into drains? Our plan includes the launch of a community fund to support

02:48local river health initiatives, championed by local people. And working alongside the

02:54Rivers Trust, there will be opportunities for people to volunteer as citizen scientists

02:58to collect data on river health. We also held a Rivers Summit and Environmental AGM so that

03:04we could talk to North West stakeholders about our plans and involve the community in delivering

03:09our commitments. We are confident that our plans will improve rivers across the North

03:14West, bringing communities together as we join forces to help our bodies of water flourish

03:19again, making the North West greener, healthier and stronger.