Sewage spills caused by United Utilities increase in duration- here's what they say

Water firms are legally allowed to release untreated sewage into rivers and the sea to stop waste backing up in streets and houses when Britain’s sewers struggle to cope in heavy rain. This can happen due to sewer blockages or because of old or outdated sewage treatment plants.

Using data from the Rivers Trust, the experts at Utility Bidder have compared rates between 2022 and 2023. The data shows that in 2022, the average spill duration in areas controlled by United Utilities (the North West) was 6.14 hours, but by 2023 this had increased to 6.73 hours - or just over 30 minutes longer.

The data is part of that released earlier in the year, which showed that the number of hours of sewage spills from water companies across England has doubled over the past year.

2023 sewage spills across Lancashire

Data from the Environment Agency shows sewage from storm overflows was flowing into water bodies in:

- Preston for 10,265 hours in 2023, during 1,488 spills. This was up from 3,639 hours recorded the year before, when there were 739 spills in the area.

- South Ribble for 8,189 hours in 2023, during 1,551 spills. This was up from 4,002 hours recorded the year before, when there were 1,094 spills in the area.

- Chorley for 13,942 hours in 2023, during 2,294 spills. This was up from 6,882 hours recorded the year before, when there were 1,290 spills in the area.

- Lancaster for 16,164 hours in 2023, during 1,870 spills. This was up from 13,653 hours recorded the year before, when there were 1,459 spills in the area.

- West Lancashire for 8,587 hours in 2023, during 1,458 spills. This was up from 3,548 hours recorded the year before, when there were 507 spills in the area.

- Wyre for 6,977 hours in 2023, during 1,080 spills. This was up from 2,240 hours recorded the year before, when there were 593 spills in the area.

- Fylde for 7,711 hours in 2023, during 1,372 spills. This was up from 4,713 hours recorded the year before, when there were 1,023 spills in the area.

- Blackpool for 260 hours in 2023, during 105 spills. This was down slightly from 290 hours recorded the year before, when there were 52 spills in the area.

United Utilities

A United Utilities spokesperson, said: “We saw one of the wettest years on record in the North West and that contributed to an increased number of storm overflow operations compared to the previous year.

“Whilst the current system is designed to activate during rainfall, we understand and share people’s concerns and the need for change. That’s why we are proposing our largest ever investment programme to tackle storm overflows in the North West between 2025 and 2030.”

Ofwat investigation

United Utilities, which handles the North West’s water and wastewater, is being investigated over the spills. Formal action is being taken by industry regulator Ofwat, who have also served notices on Dŵr Cymru Welsh Water, Hafren Dyfrdwy, and Severn Trent to gather evidence for the investigation.

Read more about the investigation here