Photo: BBC
Following earlier complaints of upset stomachs in the Port Meadow area, Oxford wild swimmers have criticised Thames Water after a sewage release was communicated a day late.
Blaming an IT failure for the delay of an email, Thames Water wrote to Oxford-based swimming group Brrrrr! on Christmas Day, but it arrived on Boxing Day.
Thames Water has apologised and said it was investigating the failure.
“It is not OK, it’s disgusting.”
Oxford West and Abingdon MP, Layla Moran
Commenting on the failure, Brrrrr! member, Jo Sandelson said: “A few of us have had tummy aches, and one of my friends said: ‘I can keep my head out of the water and my mouth shut, but the fish don’t have that luxury’.”
Calls for water infrastructure to improve:
Oxford West and Abingdon MP Layla Moran said: “It is not OK, it’s disgusting. The stories I’ve heard of the illnesses that people get, they’re right to be worried and the communication isn’t good enough.
“I’m glad Thames Water have said they want to do more about it, but I think we’re now at the point where we need to see some proof.”
Chair of the House of Commons’ environmental audit committee, Philip Dunne blamed “creaking” infrastructure across the country and called on it to be improved.
He said water infrastructure spending was “not keeping pace with the development above ground.”
A spokesperson for Thames Water said: “We’re sorry for the delay in the Witney discharge notification being sent to river users at Christmas, which was due to an error in our automated email alert system which is currently being trialled across six sites in Oxford.
“We regard all discharges of untreated sewage as unacceptable and will work with the government, Ofwat and the Environment Agency to accelerate work to stop them being necessary and are determined to be transparent,”
