10 Sep 2026
Image description: An aerial view of Blackpool north pier. Photo by Mark mc neill on Unsplash United Utilities (UU) Water Ltd has been fined £964,225 for a sewage leak which led the Environment Agency (EA) to issue swimming bans along a stretch of Lancashire’s coastline. The water company pleaded guilty to five offences related […]
03 Sep 2026
Image description: Sewage pipe contained between rocks pouring out into a river. Photo by Jacob Vathikulam on Unsplash In a fresh exclusive, the Guardian reports that the number of suspected illegal discharges of raw sewage into rivers and seas during dry weather has risen sharply in 2026. Freedom of information requests submitted by Robert Forrester, […]
03 Sep 2026
Image description: A hand wearing a blue glove holding a test tube after sampling water from the river for analysis. The Guardian has exclusively revealed that Thames Water’s pilot tests for its proposed Teddington Direct River Abstraction (TDRA) scheme produced levels of a toxic “forever chemical” at up to 13 times the legal limit, […]
27 Aug 2026
Image description: Blue-green algae (Cyanobacteria) in the canal network in Bruges, Belgium Image credit: P Mantha on Unsplash Blue-green algae blooms causing mass disruption Successive heatwaves across the UK this summer have triggered a wave of blue-green algae blooms in rivers, lakes and coastal waters, causing widespread disruption to swimmers and raising deeper concerns […]
25 Aug 2026
Photo by Annie Spratt The Environment Agency issued bathing warnings for three Isle of Wight beaches this week after storm overflows released sewage-contaminated water following heavy rain, reviving long-running concerns about the resilience of the island’s sewer network. The agency advised against swimming at Gurnard, Shanklin and Bembridge on Wednesday 19 August, with Southern Water’s own Rivers and Sea Watch service listing around 15 further locations where an “outfall release within the last 24 hours” may have affected water quality. Multiple […]
20 Aug 2026
Photo by Jonathan Bean on Unsplash While some parts of the UK are set to receive the “first meaningful rain for a long time” in the coming days, it reportedly will not be sufficient reverse widespread drought conditions that continue to strain wildlife, farmers, firefighters and water resources. According to Environment Agency data from […]
18 Aug 2026
Photo by Gabe Fender Bathing has resumed on part of Blyth South Beach in Northumberland after a week-long precautionary advisory following reports of a possible fuel or oil spill, though the investigation into the source of the pollution continues. A strong-smelling substance found on the sand The Environment Agency logged a pollution incident on its water […]
13 Aug 2026
Image description: Hands wearing blue plastic gloves taking a water sample from a pond using a pipette and brown glass sampling bottle. New data published by EA paints a ‘very concerning’ picture for England’s waterways The Environment Agency’s (EA) latest data, published 6 August 2026, showed that just 14% of England’s rivers, lakes, estuaries […]
