‘Utterly appalling’: anger over swimmers in Hampstead Heath wildlife ponds

"The nature campaigner and barrister Paul Powesland said: “I am not defending the people in the video, but scenes like this are an almost inevitable consequence of the destruction of outdoor lidos and the poisoning of rivers across London. It’s madness for a city the size of London to have only one set of wild swimming ponds; conveniently located in one of the wealthiest areas.”

I'm with him here actually. This should not have happened where waterbirds were nesting, but also there's massive inequality in people's #AccessToNature and safe swimming in the #SewagePollution crisis.

And it's a vicious circle, a lot of people behave badly because they never learned not to, because they don't get outdoors because there are so few places they are allowed to which is justified because they behave badly.

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2026/may/27/swimmers-hampstead-heath-pond-nesting-swans

Gibraltar dumping all of its raw sewage into Mediterranean

"In 2017, the European court of justice ruled that the UK was in breach of wastewater law by failing to treat Gibraltar’s sewage, but the European Commission lost any power to take action after Brexit."
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2026/may/06/uk-territory-gibraltar-dumps-raw-sewage-mediterranean

#WaterPollution #SewagePollution #DirtyManOfEurope

In a major win for South Bay creeks, a federal judge has ruled that Mountain View and Sunnyvale violated the Clean Water Act by allowing raw sewage to flow into Stevens and Calabazas creeks--and that they must take steps to fix the problem.

"There were persistent high levels of bacteria and human fecal matter in their stormwater discharges throughout the system," as Baykeeper managing attorney Eric Buescher told NBC Bay Area News.

Now, Baykeeper and the cities will present the judge with suggestions about how to address the problem. The judge is expected to issue a decision on that some time this summer.

https://www.nbcbayarea.com/news/local/south-bay-cities-fined-sewage-creeks/4065134/

#sfbay #sanfranciscobay #bayarea #southbay #stevenscreek #calabazascreek #waterpollution #sewagepollution #mountainview #sunnyvale

Why we keep swimming in polluted waters

Odd choice of title - it's because we don't have a choice - but interesting article on how wild swimmers feel about the UK'S appalling #SewagePollution

https://theconversation.com/why-we-keep-swimming-in-polluted-waters-researchers-277120

#WaterPollution #WildSwimming #ColdWaterSwimming

Four Bay Area beaches are among 10 of the dirtiest in CA, as our partners at Heal the Bay report.

And San Francisco accounts for A LOT of coastal California's sewage spills.

Last year, the EPA & CA joined us in suing SFPUC for its 500+ Clean Water Act violations, including bypassing treatment systems and failing to maintain required treatment capacity during storms.

https://www.sfgate.com/local/article/four-bay-area-beaches-ranked-among-dirtiest-21073825.php

#sewage #sewagepollution #sanfrancisco #sfpuc #sf #cleanwateract #waterpollution #bayarea #sfbay #sanfranciscobay @sfgate

United Utilities failed to spend allocated funds for sewage pollution reduction in Windermere

United Utilities, the privatised water company responsible for wastewater management in North West England, has underspent £52 million on crucial projects aimed at reducing sewage pollution in Windermere and surrounding areas. According to a Freedom of Information request, Ofwat revealed that since ... [More info]

There are many problems with Trump's plan to re-open #Alcatraz as a prison but one of the main issues is... poop.

Water & sewage have always been a problem on Alcatraz, contributing to its high operating costs that were a major reason the prison closed in 1963.

There's also the issue of SF's already overtaxed sewage and stormwater system, which often overflows during heavy rain. Adding a huge residential prison population to the mix would just make things worse.

https://www.sfchronicle.com/sf/article/alcatraz-trump-reopen-wastewater-20774648.php

#sf #sanfrancisco #pollution #waterpolllution #alcatraz #sewage #sewagepollution

Serious water pollution incidents up 60% in #England, Environment Agency says

Esme Stallard, July 18, 2025

Excerpt: "Every year the Environment Agency records the number of times pollution such as untreated sewage is released from water company sites such as treatment works into the country's waterways.

Just three companies were responsible for the vast majority of the most serious incidents - #ThamesWater (33), #SouthernWater (15) and #YorkshireWater (13).

" 'These figures expose a brutal truth. Serious #pollution incidents are rising, #sewage discharges remain rampant, and our rivers are spiralling toward #EcologicalCollapse. This is not just regulatory failure; it is a national disgrace,' said #RiverAction CEO James Wallace."

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cg5zl75dmm0o

#WaterIsLife #WaterPollution #SewagePollution #RiversInEngland

Beach day? NOT! Eeeeewwww!

#Pathogen risk found at 78% of #Maine coastal #beaches tested in 2024, report finds

July 8, 2025

"The report noted Maine beaches with persistent pollution problems last year included #GoodiesBeach in #RockportME, #GoochsBeach in #KennebunkME, #CapeNeddick Beach, #LaiteBeach in #CamdenME, Little Beach in #OgunquitME, #FerryBeach in #ScarboroughME, #WillardBeach in #SouthPortlandME, #MothersBeach in Kennebunk, and #GooseRocksBeach in #KennebunkportME ."

Source:
https://www.msn.com/en-us/health/other/pathogen-risk-found-at-78-of-maine-coastal-beaches-tested-in-2024-report-finds/ar-AA1Icy9m?ocid=winp2fptaskbar&cvid=d56d1d887b4b43bb9d10ee87215742d4&ei=8

#WaterIsLife #MaineBeaches #SewagePollution #OceansAreLife