|
 |
 | | | | | |||||||||||||||||||
| | You are in: UK: England | |||||||||||||||||||||
 | | Wednesday, 3 October, 2001, 13:01 GMT 14:01 UK Inquiry into sewage overflow plan  Northumbrian Water says outfall pipes are rarely used A public inquiry has begun in Sunderland over applications by Northumbrian Water to discharge overflows from its sewerage system into the North Sea. The firm has applied for permission to use the outlets in the quay wall at Whitburn and the outfall pipe at its new �70m sewage treatment works in Hendon. The company says it only uses the two outfall pipes in emergencies and is applying to make their use more regular. But campaigners claim Northumbrian already discharges effluent more often than it says it does and that it is damaging the environment. 'Major improvements' The company's application to discharge the sewage was "called in" for public inquiry by Environment Minister Michael Meacher. Pressure group CASSS, Campaign Against Sewage in the Sea at Sunderland, claims the sewerage system is inadequate. Professor Malcolm Hooper, chairman of CASSS, said the inquiry, which opened on Wednesday, would provide an opportunity for the public to express their views on the sewerage system.
Stephen Tromans, counsel for Northumbrian Water, said: "The applications relate to two elements of the sewerage network which are the product of major recent improvements instituted to meet EC requirements. "These are Hendon sewage treatment works and the Whitburn storm storage and pumping system. "The consents sought are concerned with the practicalities of dealing with storm sewage at Hendon, and with emergency situations at Hendon and Whitburn." He said the applications would ensure there would be no potentially unhealthy backup of sewage in the system. Ultra-violet light New ultra-violet light disinfection facilities are due to be operational at Hendon by March next year. The light will be used to remove infection from water which has already been treated, before it is discharged through the works' long outfall pipe. Northumbrian Water has said that overflow facilities would only be used when the amount of sewage and water flowing into its plants was three times the sewage flow on a dry day. Any overflow would be diluted by rain water and screened to remove sewage litter. The public inquiry, being held at the Seaburn Hotel in Sunderland, is expected to last three weeks. | | See also:  Internet links: The BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet sites Top England stories now:  Links to more England stories are at the foot of the page. | |||||||||||||||||||
|
Links to more England stories |
 | | ^^ Back to top News Front Page | World | UK | UK Politics | Business | Sci/Tech | Health | Education | Entertainment | Talking Point | In Depth | AudioVideo ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------- To BBC Sport>> | To BBC Weather>> ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------- © MMIII|News Sources|Privacy  |
E-mail this story to a friend