Is the Lake District National Park Authority ignoring a new sewage threat to Windermere?

For the second time this week, we're reaching out to ask for your help in addressing a pressing issue facing our lake. And our ask is simple. Currently, the Lake District National Park Authority (LDNPA) is reviewing a planning application that could significantly impact the health of Windermere. This application proposes increasing the sewage load directed to a decommissioned wastewater treatment plant, despite the existing cesspit's history of overflow problems. The development proposal fails to meet the Environment Agency's suggested storage capacity, and approving these plans will increase the risk of sewage contaminating Windermere. We need your help to hold the LDNPA accountable.

Let’s delve into the details.

At Save Windermere, our mission is to protect the natural beauty and ecological health of Windermere and its surrounding areas. We're dedicated to eliminating sewage discharges into our local waterways to ensure that England's largest natural lake remains pristine for future generations. While we have no specific interest in the use of Pearsall House, our primary concern is stopping all sewage from entering the lake and holding both regulators and water companies accountable.

Previously, we expressed concerns about the capacity of the Ferry House Wastewater Treatment Works (WwTW) and the associated sewer network, owned by United Utilities (UU), to handle the additional sewage load from the proposed development. The crux of the issue was whether the existing infrastructure could accommodate this new demand. Now, we must revisit the details of the final proposal.

The proposed storage solutions are clearly inadequate for the anticipated increase in sewage volume from the new development. The Environment Agency (EA) specifies that ‘18m³ for two users (plus an additional 6.8m³ for each extra user)’ is necessary, leading to a total requirement of 113m³ of storage for the development. The current proposal falls short of this recommendation, and past interventions by UU at this site have failed to ensure sufficient capacity within the existing network.

With support from our colleagues at Windrush Against Sewage Pollution (WASP), particularly Professor Peter Hammond, we've raised further concerns about United Utilities' proposed mitigation measures. UU's suggestion to increase the tankering of sewage from Ferry House WwTW to Ambleside WwTW is simply not viable. Professor Hammond has documented that Ambleside WwTW has illegally spilled sewage on 90 occasions between 2018 and 2023, exposing significant existing capacity issues. Adding more load to this already strained site is not a sustainable solution. It’s worth noting that back in 2013, UU itself acknowledged in their own report that tankering sewage from Ferry House to Ambleside was “not a long-term solution.”

Allowing this development to proceed without first implementing a sustainable solution would undermine the National Park’s statutory duty to preserve and enhance the natural beauty of the Lake District. This development would increase the risk of further discharges of untreated and poorly treated sewage into England’s largest freshwater lake.

Moreover, the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF), under Paragraph 180 (l) (formerly paragraph 174), clearly states:

“Planning policies and decisions should contribute to and enhance the natural and local environment by:

i) preventing new and existing development from contributing to, being put at unacceptable risk from, or being adversely affected by, unacceptable levels of soil, air, water, or noise pollution or land instability. Development should, wherever possible, help to improve local environmental conditions such as air and water quality, taking into account relevant information such as river basin management plans.”

We are deeply concerned that the LDNPA might disregard this evidence and approve the proposal.

There is a straightforward and effective solution that we fully support: converting Ferry House WwTW into a pumping station and transporting the effluent to a properly equipped treatment facility. Given the current site’s unsuitability for a new treatment plant, this solution is both simple and sustainable. It would prevent new developments from contributing to further environmental degradation and promote sustainable development in the area.

To date, the LDNPA has remained silent while United Utilities, a £7 billion company, exploits our natural resources. They have watched this exploitation and they have also taken funding directly from the polluter, with UU contributing £30,000 to just one of their projects. We believe it is entirely unacceptable for the LDNPA to accept this money, given the extent of sewage dumping in the National Park.

You can read our full letter to the LDNPA below.

Now, we need YOU to join us in urging the LDNPA to prioritise the protection of Windermere. Let them know why this issue matters to you.

Click the “SEND EMAIL” button to open our email template and submit your own objection to the application.