Why Are People Paddling Out at Seaton Beach This Saturday?

Cornwall joins nationwide protest over sewage pollution as bathing season begins

Water users in South East Cornwall will take to the sea this Saturday 17th May in protest against the continued discharge of raw sewage into UK waters. The Seaton Beach Paddle Out Protest starts at 1pm, and is part of a coordinated action at over 40 locations across the UK.

The protests are being organised by environmental charity Surfers Against Sewage, as the official bathing season kicks off. The action follows alarming figures revealing that South West Water discharged sewage over 56,000 times so far this year. The pollution lasted a combined 9,074 hours and included spills into designated bathing waters.

Seaton named Cornwall’s most polluted bathing site again

For the third year in a row, Seaton Beach has recorded the highest levels of sewage pollution of any bathing spot in Cornwall. Protesters say they’ve had enough.

Marcus Kern, a local representative for Surfers Against Sewage, said:
“Seaton Beach has received more sewage pollution than any other bathing site in Cornwall every year for the last three years and not enough is done to stop this. The water treatment works in Seaton Valley hasn’t even got a monitor fitted to report its pollution for crying out loud!”

Thousands expected to paddle out across the UK

Saturday’s protests come just weeks after new data revealed sewage was discharged over half a million times into UK waters in the past year. That’s an average of more than once every minute.

Water companies across England failed to meet Environment Agency targets, with sewage pollution incidents increasing by 30% instead of decreasing by 40%. Sewage poured into the sea, rivers and lakes for a total of 4.7 million hours while shareholders of private water companies received £1.2 billion in dividends.

Giles Bristow, CEO at Surfers Against Sewage, said:
“Another year, another summer of swimming and surfing in sewage while our shameless water companies laugh all the way to the bank. The public has simply had enough and will be paddling out in their thousands to send a clear message to government and the polluters: end this sewage scandal now!”

Calls for reform and transparency

Protesters are demanding a complete overhaul of the privatised water sector in England and Wales, and increased monitoring and transparency in Scotland and Northern Ireland, where only a small percentage of sewage overflows are monitored.

Surfers Against Sewage is urging people to join the protest and then email their MP to call for serious reform of the water industry.

Giles added:
“Our failing water industry has been trumpeting billions in investment to clean up their act, but we know that these fat cat bosses can’t be trusted to keep their promises. The proof is in the missed targets, shocking statistics and devastating stories of sickness we continue to see year after year.”

“People should be free to use the water without fear of getting sick, and that’s why we developed the Safer Seas & Rivers Service, a free app that provides real-time pollution alerts, giving peace of mind for those worried about sewage pollution.”