Frustration over water quality progress - meeting

Planned improvements to water quality in Scarborough could feel "too little, too late" for some people, Yorkshire Water has admitted.

Last year, bathing water in the town's South Bay was classed by the Environment Agency as "poor", while water in the North Bay was deemed as "sufficient", two years after having been rated as "good".

At a special public meeting on Monday where the issue was discussed, one councillor said persistent issues with sewage in the seawater were "frustrating" and that progress had to be "faster".

Yorkshire Water said a programme of investment in Scarborough would reduce spills by 2030, but that other agencies shared responsibility for the water quality.

Steve Crawford, from campaign group Surfers Against Sewage, told the meeting of North Yorkshire Council's Scarborough and Whitby Area Committee: ​"Based on the ratings, if it was a restaurant, you wouldn't touch it with a bargepole."

Crawford, who lost his job as a surfing instructor three years ago when beach visitors in Scarborough were told not to enter the water, said: ​"I think it's fantastic that Yorkshire Water is investing in infrastructure, but it needs to clarify why its previous work failed, if I'm to trust it now."

Speaking to the BBC after the meeting, Mr Crawford added that he was "not very" confident Yorkshire Water would deliver on the promised improvements.

"I'd love to see things change. Hope for the best and expect the worst, that's all you can do in this situation."

​The Environment Agency currently tests bathing water quality from May to September, according to the Local Democracy Reporting Service.

However, councillors have called for more frequent testing because of Scarborough's status as a tourist town.

​Councillor Roberta Swiers told the meeting: "The extension of the testing regime has to happen because we're a year-round destination, because holiday parks are used consistently.

​"For everyone in this room, it's very frustrating the issues remain and the change has to come faster.

"We need results and we want to see Scarborough going up in these water quality tables because it's one of the best resorts in the country."

Meanwhile, ​Alison Hume, Labour MP for Scarborough and Whitby, said she was concerned "the people of Scarborough cannot be assured the water they are bathing in is safe".

​The MP said the system for rating bathing water quality should be more "dynamic" in order to reflect recent improvements "instead of this four-year cycle".

​Hume added that she would be pushing the government to adopt "a more dynamic resolution to this".

Miles Cameron, manager of strategic partnerships for bathing water at Yorkshire Water, said Scarborough was a "key priority" for the company.

He told the meeting: ​"I know for many in the room it feels like too little, too late, but it is coming and we are working on these projects. We hold the operational team to account."

Cameron later told the BBC: "Bathing water quality is a complex thing. Our overflow assets have a part to play, but so does everything else.

"It takes everybody to resolve the issue. We've got investment to put into the town which we're delighted about - tens of millions of pounds.

"But it will take all those other agencies and our customers to really turn the beach to 'excellent'."

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