ACTIVISTS from ‘Cut the Crap, Shipley’ have delivered a petition signed by more than 1,000 people, calling for Yorkshire Water to stop releasing raw sewage into rivers.
The petition was handed over at the firm’s headquarters in Bradford, emphasising the threat to wildlife, swimmers, rowers and the general public.
The signatures were collected in just a couple of hours at the recent Saltaire Festival.
Mark Fielding, spokesperson for ‘Cut the Crap, Shipley’, said: “Our petition shows the strength of feeling out there against the continued pollution of our rivers by these monopoly water companies.
“We’re advised by Yorkshire Water that they intend to reduce total discharges by 20% by 2025.
“It is simply not enough - and any remedial action should not be at the expense of their customers.”
He added that they were particularly concerned about the River Aire locally and that this was after the news that Yorkshire Water must pay back £20 million to customers for under-performance in 2022-2023.
The company met its targets on pollution incidents and leakage but failed on almost everything else.
The petition comes as the water company has today outlined its £7.8 billion investment plans across the region for 2025-2030.
Average annual bills would rise by around £80 in 2025/26 with small increases each year in order to help fund the improvements.
It is the firm’s largest ever environmental investment and includes, £3.1bn to drive efforts to deliver secure, safe, clean water supplies with improved resilience of its network of pipes.
A total of £4.3bn will support plans for a healthy, natural environment, with a focus on protecting and improving river and coastal water quality, to create a cleaner, safer water environment.
The plans also outline investment in customer service and an increase in support available to customers with an investment of £446m.
The plan is subject to approval by Ofwat and will come at a cost, but the company says it has sought to balance investment in water systems with ensuring bills are affordable for its customers.
Nicola Shaw, chief executive of Yorkshire Water, said: “This submission marks our largest ever environmental investment and illustrates our commitment to deliver what our customers expect.
“The programme will protect and improve the quality of water in rivers and at coasts, leading to cleaner, safer water environments that support recreation and biodiversity across the region.”
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