Children are sailing in sewage, and nobody is being held accountable.

The River Medway - the defining feature of our community - is being used as an open sewer. We are calling on Lauren Edwards MP, the Environment Agency, and Medway Council to take immediate action to end the discharge of raw sewage into the Medway and protect the health of our families, our wildlife, and our river.

In 2025 Southern Water polluted waterways in Rochester and Strood for a total of 1532 hours - over 63 days of raw sewage. It's getting worse, not better. In 2026, as of 8 March alone, there have already been 387 hours of sewage overflows - 1/4 of the entire 2025 annual total, and we're barely two months into the year. 

But Southern Water isn't the only culprit. Houseboats at Hoo Marina houseboats are widely known to discharge raw, untreated sewage directly into the river - a situation so notorious that locals have nicknamed the area "Hoo Poo". There appears to be no meaningful enforcement of regulations requiring holding tanks or pump-out facilities.

Children learning to sail at Wilsonian Sailing Club at Hoo capsize regularly - it's a normal part of the sport. Every time they do, they are immersed in and swallowing water contaminated with raw sewage. Parents and members at the club report growing concerns about gastric complaints, skin irritations, and ear infections following time on the water. 

The river's ecology is being devastated. Anglers who have fished the Medway for decades report that fish species have disappeared entirely, and those remaining are in sharp decline. The Angling Trust has confirmed the Medway is one of the most polluted rivers in the country.

Meanwhile, the Medway Council River Strategy, adopted in February 2026, sparsely mentions sewage pollution - despite it being the single greatest threat to anyone using or living near the river. You cannot promote a river for tourism and recreation while ignoring that it's being used as a sewer.

On the Thames, the Port of London Authority banned sewage discharge from houseboats and workboats in 2015 (Byelaw 49), and extended the ban to all commercial vessels from July 2024. The Thames Tideway Tunnel, completed in 2025, has cut sewage storm overflows by 95%. If it can be done on the Thames, it can be done on the Medway.

WHAT WE'RE ASKING FOR

1. A complete ban on the discharge of raw sewage into the River Medway - from vessels and water company infrastructure alike - following the Thames model.

2. Immediate Environment Agency enforcement action against Southern Water, with binding remediation timelines.

3. Investigation and enforcement of sewage discharge regulations at Hoo Marina, including requirements for pump-out facilities or mains connections for all houseboats.

4. The Medway Council River Strategy to be strengthened with specific, measurable commitments to tackle sewage pollution.

5. Lauren Edwards MP to champion this cause in Parliament - making the cleanup of the Medway her legacy as the MP.

The Medway is in the very name of our community. Cleaning it up is a cause that crosses party lines, unites residents from Hoo to Strood to Rochester, and delivers results people can see - in the water, in the return of fish, in children sailing without fear of infection. An MP who leads this fight, who turns "Hoo Poo" from a bitter local joke into a reminder of how bad things once were, would leave a legacy that outlasts any single parliament.

Please sign and share this petition. The Medway deserves better. Our children deserve better.

Useful Links:

• Sewage data for Rochester and Strood: https://top-of-the-poops.org/constituency/rochester-and-strood
• Lauren Edwards MP: https://www.theyworkforyou.com/mp/26597/lauren_edwards/rochester_and_strood
• Thames sewage ban precedent: https://pla.co.uk/prohibition-discharge-sewage-thames
• Wilsonian Sailing Club: https://www.wilsoniansc.org.uk