I posed a (rather rhetorical) question to our regular reader(s) on XTwitter yesterday, and the answer arrived in next to no time:
This evening Storm Isha is unleashing her full fury upon the West Country, and one of the unfortunate side effects of her activity is South West Water’s current “WaterFit Live” map of sewage pollution:
As you can see, there have been numerous pollution incidents around the coast of Devon and Cornwall. Sticking close to home to begin with, there is currently sewage in the sea at our local big beach break at Widemouth Bay:
Further north there has been a brief combined sewer overflow activation at Westward Ho!
Further south there is also an all too familiar problem at Harlyn Bay:
This morning Storm Isha has moved on to wreak more destruction further north. Meanwhile here in South West England there are sewage pollution alerts all around our coasts:
There has been further CSO activity along the north coast, but let’s take a look at South Devon now. Combined sewer overflows have been in operation all across Plymouth overnight, including several discharging into the River Plym:
The Shaft 16 pumping station is still active:
The River Exe is suffering once again, with a multi hour burst from the Hartopp Road pumping station in Exmouth:
Further south there has been a brief discharge into the River Teign at Shaldon:
There has also been pollution of the River Dart:
and the Kingsbridge Estuary:
This morning there was a stark contrast between the Surfers Against Sewage “48 hour” map of sewage pollution around the coast of Devon and Cornwall:
and South West Water’s “12 hour” WaterFit Live map:
By Tuesday afternoon Storm Isha has departed, but Storm Jocelyn is arriving soon. As a result a couple of very familiar locations are sporting sewage pollution “red flags”. On the north coast of Cornwall there is Portreath:
Whilst down on the English Riveria coast the Ilsham Valley pumping station is leaking into Torbay:
Storm Jocelyn has been and gone, and there are no active sewage pollution incidents visible on South West Water’s WaterFit Live map this morning:
The “spills” at Portreath, Plymouth and the Ilsham Valley pumping station in Torbay all stopped yesterday evening.
The wind is veering offshore for the north coast at the weekend. Just when you’re hoping to get back in the water the sewage pollution kicks off yet again:
On Thursday evening another band of rain arrived in the West Country:
Our local big beach break at Widemouth is suffering yet again:
So is Westward Ho!:
and Lynmouth:
Other north coast beaches less likely to be visited by surfers are also affected. Here’s Ilfracombe:
and Combe Martin:
The south coast doesn’t escape either. Here’s the situation in the Kingsbridge Estuary as midnight approaches:
In a mysterious development a sewage pollution incident in Exmouth this evening is visible on the Surfers Against Sewage pollution alerts map:
and on South West Water’s WaterFit Live beach specific page:
However it is not visible on the WaterFit Live front page:
To be continued…
