‘Do not enter the sea’ warning in Littlehampton following sewage discharge
Residents were warned against entering the sea in Littlehampton following a ‘discharge of untreated sewage’, according to Arun District Council (ADC).
‘Do not enter the sea’ signs were placed on the beach on Sunday (August 30) following the incident.
ADC said it was notified by Southern Water ‘of a discharge of untreated sewage into the sea 5km off the coast of Littlehampton and Climping, as well as at the mouth of the River Arun’.
In a post shared online, an ADC spokesperson said: “We are adopting a precautionary approach and are putting up signs at the beach advising against bathing in the sea and suggest that people and dogs do not go into the sea to swim or paddle. Please monitor beach signs for updates.”
An update shared later in the day said Southern Water had informed ADC that a ‘faulty valve is the reason for the release’.
The authority added: “We can confirm that following testing, Southern Water has advised that the water quality has returned to excellent and we will be updating the signage on the beach accordingly.”
Data provided by Southern Water’s Rivers and Seas Watch revealed five ‘genuine’ releases at Sea Road from 9.51am on August 29 to 10.12pm on August 30.
Only two of these released impacted water quality, according to Southern Water.
Another release was reported from Littlehampton’s Foreshore Tank, lasting one hour and 35 minutes and impacting the town’s water quality, according to Rivers and Seas Watch. Two more releases, equalling 47 minutes in total and impacting Littlehampton’s bathing water, were reported in Ford Road, Arundel.
Southern Water said its storm release system ‘operated as intended’ after Littlehampton received ‘more than five times the average daily rainfall for August on Saturday evening’.
A spokesperson for the water company said: “Heavy rainfall over the weekend resulted in several of our storm release systems activating as intended to protect homes, schools and businesses from flooding.
"Hardened ground caused by the hot, dry summer is less able to absorb water, meaning that large volumes of rainfall instead flood directly into the combined sewer system, increasing pressure on the network and resulting in storm overflow releases.
"We share real-time information about this through Rivers and Seas Watch to help inform water users.
"We're working hard to reduce our reliance on overflow releases through our £1.5 billion Clean Rivers and Seas Plan, which includes more than £340m allocated specifically to Sussex.”