STOP sewage dumping at Heacham beach West Norfolk, which means bathing not advised

STOP sewage dumping at Heacham beach West Norfolk, which means bathing not advised

The Issue

Heacham beach was classified once again by the Environment Agency as “poor”, and that “bathing is not advised” following E. coli testing that took place on 11, 24 and 29 May 2023. We find these results unacceptable and sewage is polluting our precious coast, with no real plan to stop this now.

Our West Norfolk coastline is something that we feel connected to, and proud of, we boast to our friends and family about our proximity to the sea and sand. It’s so important for our local tourism industry and the Wash is England’s largest site of special scientific interest, a haven for birds, seals, and a seafood industry. 

Residents and locals want the village to be known for it’s lavender, community, Pocahontas, 1795 declaration, and a beach seaside resort with sunset views for over a century and a half, following the opening of the railway to Hunstanton. Instead its sewage and no swim warnings that dominate regional and national news.

Recent votes from our local Conservative MPs show they are happy to vote down tougher action and expect taxpayers to fix the problem.  It’s clear they don’t share the urgency or concern to the level of the local community. Instead preferring to blame Victorian sewers. We believe the reality is that lack of investment and poor regulation of privatised water companies, together with a lack of powers, plus cuts to funding for the Environment Agency are the reason we have a sewage crisis. The plans set out by the Conservative Party after much pressure, don’t go fast enough or bold enough.

It hasn’t always been this way. Water quality at Heacham has got progressively worse, going from sufficient to poor in 2019. Neighbouring Hunstanton had Blue Flag status until a 2016 downgrade to just Seaside Award, due to water quality, and fears a further reduction here would devastate the town. West Norfolk feels like no-one seems to care.

We are asking James Wild as our elected MP to listen and change his position on sewage discharges and fight harder to stop sewage in our rivers and seas, and to lobby for bolder and faster action, and to hold water companies to account. 

STOP SEWAGE DUMPING - tax water companies huge profits and fix our sewage system. 

avatar of the starter
Rob ColwellPetition StarterCllr Rob Colwell Gaywood South, Norfolk County Council. Gaywood North Bank, King's Lynn West Norfolk Borough Council. Chair and Parliamentary Spokesperson for North West Norfolk Liberal Democrats. Solicitor
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This petition had 482 supporters

The Issue

Heacham beach was classified once again by the Environment Agency as “poor”, and that “bathing is not advised” following E. coli testing that took place on 11, 24 and 29 May 2023. We find these results unacceptable and sewage is polluting our precious coast, with no real plan to stop this now.

Our West Norfolk coastline is something that we feel connected to, and proud of, we boast to our friends and family about our proximity to the sea and sand. It’s so important for our local tourism industry and the Wash is England’s largest site of special scientific interest, a haven for birds, seals, and a seafood industry. 

Residents and locals want the village to be known for it’s lavender, community, Pocahontas, 1795 declaration, and a beach seaside resort with sunset views for over a century and a half, following the opening of the railway to Hunstanton. Instead its sewage and no swim warnings that dominate regional and national news.

Recent votes from our local Conservative MPs show they are happy to vote down tougher action and expect taxpayers to fix the problem.  It’s clear they don’t share the urgency or concern to the level of the local community. Instead preferring to blame Victorian sewers. We believe the reality is that lack of investment and poor regulation of privatised water companies, together with a lack of powers, plus cuts to funding for the Environment Agency are the reason we have a sewage crisis. The plans set out by the Conservative Party after much pressure, don’t go fast enough or bold enough.

It hasn’t always been this way. Water quality at Heacham has got progressively worse, going from sufficient to poor in 2019. Neighbouring Hunstanton had Blue Flag status until a 2016 downgrade to just Seaside Award, due to water quality, and fears a further reduction here would devastate the town. West Norfolk feels like no-one seems to care.

We are asking James Wild as our elected MP to listen and change his position on sewage discharges and fight harder to stop sewage in our rivers and seas, and to lobby for bolder and faster action, and to hold water companies to account. 

STOP SEWAGE DUMPING - tax water companies huge profits and fix our sewage system. 

avatar of the starter
Rob ColwellPetition StarterCllr Rob Colwell Gaywood South, Norfolk County Council. Gaywood North Bank, King's Lynn West Norfolk Borough Council. Chair and Parliamentary Spokesperson for North West Norfolk Liberal Democrats. Solicitor
Media enquiries

The Decision Makers

James Wild
James Wild
MP
Responded
“I grew up in North Norfolk enjoying our beaches so I am very concerned about the quality of bathing water at Heacham. That’s why I have been pressing the Environment Agency to tackle this problem since the poor rating was first given. The Environment Agency has said there are many potential sources of the pollution so to better identify the causes in order that appropriate action can be taken £38,000 of new government funding will pay for expert analysis of samples taken at Heacham previously and during this season. I’ll continue working with the regulator, Anglian Water, and others to improve the bathing water quality and tackle the causes of the problem. As the MP for North West Norfolk I have campaigned to protect our coastal waters and precious chalk streams. That’s why I support measures the government has taken through the Environment Act, requiring a record £56 billion investment by water companies, plus tough new powers for regulators, and unlimited fines to tackle this issue. Now powers and plans are in place water companies and regulators must be held to account to deliver improvements. When Liberal Democrats and the Labour Party had the opportunity to back this plan for 100% monitoring of storm overflows, major investment to tackle sewage discharges, and tough new penalties last month in Parliament, their MPs failed to vote. Having worked with Councillor Dark, Councillor Parish, and Council officers on Heacham issues, the Environment Agency recently updated us on what they are doing. The petition makes no reference to any of this – it is surprising the petitioner is seemingly unaware of what is action is being taken. To provide reassurance to Heacham residents and visitors that this issue is not being ignored, the action includes: • Mailshot to beachfront properties in Heacham providing guidance to owners to check and maintain small sewage systems at the properties. • £38,000 of new funding to engage the National Laboratory Service (NLS) to review data and provide advice on areas for further investigation. Samples showing elevated bacterial levels will be subject to microbial source tracking (MST) to aid in developing understanding of sources affecting bathing waters. • NLS data review will help determine areas for further investigation. For instance, it is suspected sediment in the Heacham river may be acting as a ‘bacterial reservoir’ which could affect bathing water quality; however, the NLS review will confirm if this is a suitable avenue for further investigation. • Water sampling in Heacham River harbour channel and Searles tributary to provide more up-to-date data. • Pollution prevention visits to locations in the catchment with a focus on caravan parks and on other potential sources of bacterial load further upstream. • North West Norfolk has been selected as a priority catchment for agricultural regulatory visits to inspect 10 farms within Heacham catchment before March 2024. • Pollution incidents reported to the EA (0800 807060) will be assessed and responded to in line with their current incident response and categorisation procedures. This is tangible action to try and identify solutions. I assure my constituents that I will continue to press the EA and work with others to address this critical issue and improve the quality of bathing waters through practical action so we can all enjoy our beaches and coastline.”

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Petition created on 11 June 2023