LEIGHTON BUZZARD RIVERS NOT “GOOD”
Water company bosses who cover up illegal sewage spills could now face up to two years in jail under a new law that has come into effect. New law will help Leighton Buzzard Rivers.
Local MP Alex Mayer, who voted for the law, said such penalties are “essential” to tackle illegal sewage discharges into our waterways – and to crack down on those water companies that have obstructed investigations by failing to hand over evidence.
This comes alongside a record £104 billion investment package from the water industry over the next five years to rebuild and upgrade our water system, including a new storm tank at Leighton Linslade Water Recycling Centre as part of Anglian Water’s welcome £11 billion upgrade programme.
Not a single stretch of river in the Dunstable and Leighton Buzzard constituency is rated in “good” overall health, including the Luton Lea, which is officially classified as “bad,” according to the Rivers Trust.
Local MP Alex Mayer, who said the laws help deliver on her pledge to start to clean up local rivers and waterways, said:
“Protecting and restoring our natural environment matters to me. I welcome these new laws now in force to help clean up our rivers and hold polluters to account.”
Ms Mayer is also backing calls for an independent body to monitor sewage levels, which she wants considered as part of ministers’ independent review into the water sector. However, she warned that any new system must not place extra strain on already stretched regulators.
She has contacted ministers to ask whether the Environment Agency has sufficient resources to enforce environmental protection laws.
You can find out about the state of our waterways at Rivers Trust
Find out more about Bedfordshire Great Ouse Valley Environmental Trust
