A DISTRICT councillor has said “new treatment plans are needed” to cope with an increase in population and sewage waste across the area.

Lindford ward councillor Neville Taylor has given his support to MP Philip Dunne’s private members bill which, if passed, will “place a duty on water companies to ensure that untreated sewage is not discharged into rivers and other inland waters”.

“It is really disappointing to see the state of the River Wey that flows through Whitehill, Bordon and Lindford so I am supporting the private members bill in parliament to eliminate sewerage from polluting our rivers,” said Cllr Taylor.

“The storm overflows were designed to be used during extreme weather to prevent sewers becoming overloaded.

“With increased rainfall due to climate change together with the regeneration of our town thus contributing to over capacity at the treatment works, the infrastructure is just not there to keep up.

“Over time the situation is only going to get worse. That is why I back this bill, so our water companies and agencies have to deal with the problem.”

Lindford resident, William Dadley, also spoke of the disappointing state of the River Wey: “The state of the river, downstream of the water treatment plant is terrible, you only have to go upstream a little to see the difference.

“The last time I saw it as bad as it is now was in 1976 when there was some kind of ‘incident’. New treatment plants are needed to cope with the increasing population in the area.”

Cllr Taylor added: “I voted in the council chamber along with my colleagues in 2019 to declare a climate emergency.

“We must do all we can to protect our environment. Improving the state of our local rivers will improve the biodiversity in the area which must be our goal.

“Making small changes personally will reduce the impact on climate change thus reducing rainfall therefore limiting the pressure that the overflows are under.

“I would urge residents to back the bill by visiting the Rivers Trust Website and filling in their details.

“This automatically sends an email to our local MP Damian Hinds who I hope would support this bill when it is presented to parliament.”

To give your support to the bill, visit www.sas.org.uk/EndSewagePollution-SewageBill to generate a letter to your MP.