River health
We all want our rivers to be wonderful places. Running clear and teeming with life – natural beauty spots for people to relax and enjoy.
In reality, there are three main factors that threaten our vision for rivers. These are:
- Discharges from the water industry
- Agriculture and rural land management
- Urban and transport runoff
We want to be very clear on our stance. Putting untreated sewage into rivers is unacceptable to us, our customers and the environment. That’s why we're working hard to stop these discharges, with the help of the Government, Ofwat and the Environment Agency.
Storm discharge and event duration monitoring (EDM)
Storm discharge is a mixture of rainwater and untreated sewage, released by storm overflows into watercourses. This happens during heavy or continued rain to prevent sewer flooding. We use EDM to record storm discharge activity.
Storm discharge map
Our near real-time map shows storm discharge activity, as indicated by our EDM monitors. You can use the map to see if overflows are currently discharging into a watercourse or the date and time of the last recorded discharge.
Storm discharge data
We want to be open and transparent with our storm discharge data. Access annual storm data discharge reports to see data from previous years. You can also use our third party API to integrate our data into your own applications.
Investing in river health
We’re fully committed to our future plan to reduce harm to river water. This includes only discharging high-quality treated effluent, using fewer storm overflows and working with key partners.
Frequently asked questions
Why are some monitors offline? What's the impact of storm discharge on our rivers? What are we doing about frequently discharging sites? You'll find lots of useful information on our FAQ page.
Get in touch
If you have any queries or concerns about storm discharges, you can contact us using our enquiry form.
River health projects
We know we need to do a lot more to protect our much-loved rivers. That's why we're working hard to upgrade our network, to protect our rivers through a range of projects.
Upgrading Chesham
We're investing more than £16 million in upgrading Chesham's sewage treatment works.
Upgrading Chilton Foliat
We'll be using innovative pipe lining techniques to improve efficiency and reduce storm discharges.
Upgrading Swindon's pipes
We’re investing £16 million upgrading our infrastructure in the Swindon area.