Southern Water begins £3m project at Romsey wastewater treatment plant aimed at decreasing amount of sewage being discharged into River Blackwater

A £3M project aimed at reducing the use of storm overflows which discharge raw sewage into rivers has been started at a local wastewater treatment plant.

The announcement comes after growing outrage from the public about the amount of human waste going into rivers and the sea across the UK.

Last year it was revealed that Southern Water had discharged untreated sewage into the River Blackwater 500 times.

The company has said it will be installing three new tanks at the West Wellow plant to “boost” the amount of wastewater it can treat and cutting the “likelihood of storm overflows in the River Blackwater”.

It adds: “It will help us to protect the ecology and enhance the waste quality of the river.”

Southern Water has promised to “improve or environmental performance across our region” and is investing £2 billion between 2020 and 2025 in an effort to do so.

Project manager Taniko Aston-Kolek said: “We’re delighted to be starting work upgrading West Wellow wastewater treatment works.

“We understand the concerns around storm overflows and one way we can reduce them is by significantly investing in our assets and increasing the amount of wastewater we can treat especially when there is heavy rain.

“We’d like to thank the local community for their understanding while this work happens.”

The company says it is expects the work to be finished by spring next year.