SANITARY products, wipes and other debris have been found flowing into a Hereford brook that flows into the river Wye.

Richard Fishbourne, director of environmental design company Bugs and Beasties, and fellow local environmentalists said Welsh Water is responsible for the sewage left in the grille in Widemarsh Brook near Widemarsh Walk.

The environmentalists claim the sewage was spilled into the brook on October 9. It was reported to the Environment Agency – but the group says they have only recently been made aware of it.

Hereford Times: Widemarsh Brook runs next to the regularly used footpath Widemarsh Walk.Widemarsh Brook runs next to the regularly used footpath Widemarsh Walk.

When inspecting the sewage, the environmentalists found a grille laden with hundreds of sanitary products and wipes coming from the drainage of residential properties.

The sewage had spilled from a holding tank called a combined storm overflow chamber. It holds raw sewage mixed with rainwater that needs to be emptied when the drains get too full when there is very heavy rain.

Hereford Times: The holding tank called a combined storm overflow chamber sits in between the brook and the old railway lines. The holding tank called a combined storm overflow chamber sits in between the brook and the old railway lines.

Licences are issued to water companies by the Environment Agency to monitor the level of pollution. This gives them permission to legally spill sewage into the brook and, consequently, the river.

Hereford Times: Nic Howes, Herefordshire Wildlife Trust member, inspected debris from a sewage spill flowing into a Hereford brook. Nic Howes, Herefordshire Wildlife Trust member, inspected debris from a sewage spill flowing into a Hereford brook.

A spokesperson from Welsh Water said its reports show the chamber has not spilled in the last year, and the grille is in place to trap the debris.

It has been cleared last week (as the Hereford Times began its investigations), said the spokesperson.

A spokesperson for the Environment Agency confirmed Welsh Water’s statement that there was no recorded spillage at Widemarsh Brook on October 9, 2021.

“However, we do have some evidence of a pollution upstream of the combined sewer overflow that came to light due to a report earlier in October," said the spokesperson.

“We are continuing to investigate this pollution and will work with partners, including Welsh Water, to identify the source.”

Hereford Times: The environmentalists found sanitary products, wipes and other debris in the grille. The environmentalists found sanitary products, wipes and other debris in the grille.

Nic Howes, a Herefordshire Wildlife Trust member, used a net to further inspect the debris that had been caught as a result of the overflow.

He found solid items and material that had been caught up in the sewage and had not been cleared since the last spill. He said it was contaminating the water.

“It is something of a tragedy,” he said.

Different breeds of fish live in the brook, and an egret – a small white bird similar to a heron – has been spotted.

“The wildlife is threatened by the discharge of raw sewage,” he said

There are more chambers further up the brook.

In 2020, according to the latest statistics available, the Yazor Brook sewer storm overflow spilled 18 times for a total of five hours.

In 2020 the overflow on 3 Elms Road, Hereford, spilled 14 times for a total of five hours and the overflow in Grandstand Road, Hereford, spilled 55 times for a total of 122 hours.

Hereford Times: Nic Howes, a Herefordshire Wildlife Trust member and geographer, said the previous spills in the brook and the debris is a tragedy. Nic Howes, a Herefordshire Wildlife Trust member and geographer, said the previous spills in the brook and the debris is a tragedy.

Earlier this year Hereford and South Herefordshire Conservative MP Jesse Norman criticised officials’ failure to work together to tackle the river Wye’s worsening pollution problem.

He said that while there was "fantastic" work being done by individuals to improve the river.

But the problem of pollution in the river arises from the volume of nutrients, particularly phosphates, entering rivers from farms and sewage plants.

This leads to 'blooms' of algae that smother vegetation and take oxygen from the water, killing fish.

One resident, Angela Jones, previously told BBC climate editor Justin Rowlatt that she had seen the problem increasing markedly over this time: "This river, which is supposed to be the nation's favourite, is literally being used as an open sewer."

The Guardian found that last year the Environment Agency received more than 100,000 reports of water, air, and land pollution in England – including river flowing with sewage.

According to leaked documents, the agency had ordered staff to ignore all but the most obvious high-profile incidents.

Welsh Water’s website says about 95 per cent of its water supplies for Herefordshire come from reservoirs or the river Wye.

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