Over 200 hours of raw sewage dumped into River Calder since Monday morning, say campaigners

Heavy rain has led to more than 30 storm overflow pipes between Todmorden and Halifax discharging raw sewage into the River Calder, they said.

At least four pipes have been running continuously for over 24 hours, and over 200 hours' worth of sewage has flooded the river since early Monday morning, the group said.

They have condemned the situation as a “crime against nature,” warning of the immediate risks to the river’s wildlife and the long-term damage to the ecosystem.

Matt Paton, a local environmental campaigner with Friends of the River Calder, said: “In 2023, the River Calder was crowned England’s most polluted river for sewage dumping. We shouldn’t wait for annual reports to call out what is, for many, an ongoing crime against nature.

“Years of underinvestment in our water infrastructure have left our rivers exposed to severe damage every time there’s heavy rainfall. When Yorkshire Water dumps sewage into the river on this scale, it will take weeks for the river’s ecosystem to recover.

"While the company’s bosses receive bonuses totalling more than £600,000, Yorkshire Water was fined £47 million for illegal sewage leaks. It shows that the company prioritises profits and bonuses over essential upgrades. Meanwhile, water bills are going up and our environment is paying the price.”

A Yorkshire Water spokesperson said: “Storm overflows operate to relieve pressure when there are periods of heavy or prolonged rainfall, or blockages within the sewer network, to prevent sewage backing up in the system and flooding homes and gardens.

"They therefore operate more when it is wet, which has been the case in parts of the region over the last few days, and release wastewater that has been heavily diluted by the rainfall.

"The Calder valley also has a unique geography with steep-sided valleys, high surface water runoff rates, and high connectivity of surface water into the sewer system, so use of storm overflows tends to be more frequent in this area. All the overflows along the river Calder between Halifax and Todmorden are no longer discharging.

“However, we are committed to improving the water quality in our rivers and reducing the number of discharges from storm overflows and are already underway with a £180m programme to do so across the region before April 2025 - some of which are based along the river Calder and its tributaries.

”Looking ahead, plans submitted to Ofwat detail a long-term programme to reduce the impact of wastewater on the region’s watercourses, outlining over £1bn investment in overflow reduction between 2025 and 2030.”

Local activists are preparing to join a national march on November 3, which will call on the government to introduce stronger measures against water companies.