Monday 25 April 2022: Sewage Management

Monday 25 April 2022: Sewage Management

We’d like to explore your understanding and experiences of waste water and sewage…​

• How do you think your waste water and sewage is managed? ​
• Who do you see as managing these services?​
• What, if any, problems have you had with your waste water? This may include, but isn’t limited to sewage flooding in the house or garden, drain covers popping up, or the toilet being backed up all the way to the sewer and refusing to flush. Please tell us how you dealt with the problem.

As I understand it, rain that falls on my house, and foul water (including solids) generated by my household are combined into sewage, channelled from my property, join sewage from neighbouring properties, and together the sewage is conveyed (by means of gravitational flow) by underground pipe to a local sewage treatment plant where solids are removed by filtration and flocculation. Liquor from the sewage treatment plant is discharged into a local water course, and the solids are further processed to remove noxious substances, and then transported by wagon to be spread on fields as a fertiliser (sometimes referred to by local farmers as "rocket fuel").

Southern Water has the contract for eastern Kent for managing waste water and sewage. I assume that they own the waste water and sewage pipes, and the sewage treatment plant. I assume, too that it is Southern Water that organises the detoxification of the sewage solids and arranges for its disposal into agriculture.

Personally, I have experienced no physical problems with waste water and sewage. However, the village in which I live has experienced considerable problems. In particular, during periods of prolonged rainfall, the water table rises, causing the local winterbourne to flood. I assume that this disrupts gravitational flow and also overwhelms the local sewage treatment plant. Consequently, houses located close to the winterbourne have experienced sewage flowing into their gardens and houses, and the winterbourne itself, instead of sewage pipes, has become the sewage conduit. For months on end, a couple of winters ago, Southern Water put up notices urging people to stay away from the winterbourne because of sewage contamination. The winter before last, sewage from the village was having to be pumped daily into tankers and transported away. (This totally destroyed the road surface through part of the village, and although Southern Water made a somewhat half-hearted attempt to repair the road surface, it still looks a mess.)

Affinity is a water-only company, and does not process any of your waste water. Your waste water is managed by Southern Water.

1. Were you aware that your sewage and waste water is not managed by Affinity Water? How do you feel about this (positive and negative)?​

Yes, I am aware that Southern Water manages our waste water. I do not understand the rationale for this division. I do not like the fact that my waste water bills are based not on the quantity of waste water I discharge into the waste water and sewage system but on the amount of fresh water I use. This method of charging for waste water is unfair and contrary to the good management of grey water. In my direct experience communication between Affinity Water and Southern Water is remarkably poor.     

2. Based on the image above, please tell us who your sewage supplier is. What are your opinions on the company that manages your sewage? What thoughts or questions come to mind?

I know relatively little about Southern Water. I do know, however, that since 2007 Southern Water has been owned by Greensands Holdings Limited, a consortium of investors representing infrastructure investment funds, pension funds and private equity. Currently the largest shareholders are JP Morgan Asset Management (40%), UBS Asset Management (22%), Hermes Infrastructure Funds (21%) and Whitehelm Capital (8%). I have a revulsion for this form of capitalism because its sole value is money, and therefore requires extensive regulation to make it conform to other values. For example, in June 2019, Ofwat proposed a fine of £126 million as a result of Southern Water's failures to operate its wastewater treatment works properly and deliberately misreporting its performance. Ofwat found that failings had resulted in unpermitted and premature spills of wastewater from treatment works, with wastewater being released into the environment before going through the required processes. In 2020, Southern Water pleaded guilty to 51 offences related to dumping untreated sewage into the sea, and was fined £90m.

3. How does knowing this impact how you feel your sewage is managed? Any reassurances or concerns?​

I would feel considerably more reassured were waste water in the hands of municipalities, and elected councillors directly responsible to electors for poor performance. 

4. How do you think you will manage any sewage issues in the future?

I do not know.

You may be aware that in recent times there have been incidents of sewage discharge. Below are two links which provide an explanation of why this can happen and an example of when this happened at the Thames earlier this year. ​

https://www.southernwater.co.uk/the-news-room/the-media-centre/2019/july/protecting-homes-and-managing-storms

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-london-60046320

1. What do you think waste water companies should do when this kind of situation arises? Please tell us what you think should be made a priority and why.​
2. Are there any extra actions or steps you think Affinity should take to improve the current situation? If yes, please tell us why.

The first question asks what should be done when the situation arises. However, in my view, the water company should never have allowed the situation to arise. Water provision and disposal was a public utility. The public rationale for its privatisation was so that adequate investment would be made. Plainly, investment has been woefully inadequate to the task. In the first of the two articles, Southern Water appears to suggest a level of diligence and beneficence that would make Mother Teresa look half-hearted. If I had the time, I should like to take apart Southern Water's public relations sheet line by line. 

In the second article (BBC report) Thames Water appears to claim that to have prepared adequately (for the floods) was far beyond what could be reasonably expected of them. Both Southern Water and Thames Water fall back firmly on the legality of (at least some of) their discharges.

Maybe I am missing something obvious, but if Affinity Water supplies its customers only with clean water, then how can Affinity Water impact on the disposal of waste water?