Peterborough councillor calls for action to halt flow of raw sewage into River Nene

A leading councillor has called for action to tackle what she claims is the dumping of sewage into the River Nene.

The alarm has been sounded by Councillor Nicola Day, the leader of Peterborough City Council’s Green Party group, who detailed occasions when it appeared that untreated sewage had been allowed to flow into the river.

She told a meeting of the full council: “I put a link to the Rivers Trust maps, which show where sewage network discharges and where an overflow of untreated sewage has been released into our rivers.

“At Peterborough Northminster, the sewer storm overflow spilled two times for a total of 12 hours discharging into the River Nene.

“At Peterborough Oundle Road in 2021 the overflow spilled 38 times for a total of 144 hours, discharging into the River Nene.

“At Peterborough Orton Mere, the sewer storm overflow spilled four times for a total of 65 hours, discharging into the tribute River Nene.

“At Ullswater Avenue the sewer storm overflow spilled twice for a total of five hours discharging into the Werrington Brook.

She added: I'm sure we're all aware of not only the health risks to humans, but also the devastating impact on nature these spills have.

“Is there any way that we, as a council, can pressure Anglian Water and the Environment Agency to prevent sewage being spilled into our rivers?”

Cllr Marco Cereste, Cabinet Member for Climate Change, said: “The only thing I can really suggest is perhaps we get together and see if we can come up with a plan.”