We, the undersigned, petition Cornwall Council to formally request Cornwall’s MPs to take more effective action to stop our waterways and beaches being polluted by discharges of untreated sewage into waterways and coastal waters by South West Water.

These discharges are highly damaging to local ecosystems and to Cornwall’s shellfish producers, as well as a being threat to the health of swimmers and all others who use our rivers and beaches. They are also doing real damage to Cornwall’s reputation as a holiday destination.

All but one of Cornwall’s MPs voted down Lords Amendment 45 to the Environment Bill, which would have placed a legal duty on water companies in England and Wales to make improvements to their sewage systems and demonstrate progressive reductions in the harm caused by discharges of untreated sewage.

Last year, a total of 37,649 sewage discharges by South West Water were recorded. The River Tamar was polluted by sewage 1,523 times, with discharges into the river lasting 15,546 hours.

In April this year, South West Water was fined a total of £2.1 million for a series of environmental offences across Devon and Cornwall over a four-year period. However, this fine amounts to just 0.3% of the company’s £702.4 million pre-tax profits over the period during which these offences were committed. For 2022/23, South West Water’s parent company, Pennon Group, has raised its pay-outs to shareholders by 10.9% to £111.7 million. Meanwhile, the total annual pay of South West Water’s chief executive has increased to £1.6m

South West Water and other water companies are now proposing to put the costs of long overdue investment in sewerage infrastructure onto our water bills. This is completely unacceptable while they are continuing to hand large dividends to their shareholders. As Cornwall residents, we urge the Council to formally call upon our political representatives at Westminster to take much tougher action to force the water companies to end this disgusting and dangerous pollution of our natural environment, and to remove their ability to make profits until they have done so.