Chichester Harbour wastewater concerns raised with Southern Water

Concerns with wastewater entering Chichester Harbour have been raised with top bosses at Southern Water by the area’s MP.
Pictured before the pandemic, MP Gillian Keegan with Conservancy Director/Harbour Master, Richard CravenPictured before the pandemic, MP Gillian Keegan with Conservancy Director/Harbour Master, Richard Craven
Pictured before the pandemic, MP Gillian Keegan with Conservancy Director/Harbour Master, Richard Craven

During the meeting earlier this month between Gillian Keegan and utility company’s chief executive officer Ian McAulay and his senior executives, issues around planning and the work to ensure there is capacity to cope with new homes were also discussed.

Also attending were Penny Plant and Susan Taylor, Chichester District Council cabinet members for environment and planning respectively and Bourne’s county councillor Mike Magill.

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The meeting was designed, in part to learn more about the ongoing work of Southern Water to improve its performance and encourage a closer working relationship between the council and the company.

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At the end of 2020 Mrs Keegan met Rachel Fletcher, chief executive officer of the regulatory body OFWAT, where Southern Water’s performance was discussed alongside measures in place to encourage improvements.

Mrs Keegan said: “I am very grateful to Ian and his team for their time. It was good to hear that work is ongoing to both mitigate their environmental impacts and improve the overall system capacity.

“There is a huge amount more to do, and I hope this is the first of many meetings to ensure progress is made. Moving forward I will continue to work closely with the regulator, Environment Agency and Southern Water and press for closer cooperation between the council and the water company.”

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She is also due to meet with the environment minister Rebecca Pow later this month along with other coastal MPs from the Solent region to collectively discuss the performance of Southern Water and look at the national approach to the issues faced in the area.

After the meeting, Mr McAulay said: “Partnership working is the best and most effective way to ensure a resilient water future for the people of Chichester and the wider region. Delivering water resilience in a climate crisis and across the multiple environments water exists in, demands that many parties and stakeholders have to work more closely together than ever before.

“Having proactive and constructive partners such as Gillian Keegan ensures that we hear and understand the priorities of residents and stakeholders and in turn they hear and understand those of a water utility. Together we can then take the most effective action. We therefore look forward to widening and deepening our cooperation with Gillian Keegan and all the stakeholders in the Chichester area.”

Mr Magill added: “I’m hugely grateful to Gillian for setting up this meeting. All of us in who live near the Chichester Harbour are deeply concerned by the ongoing wastewater pollution and its impacts on the environment. I will continue to work closely with Gillian and the community to push this agenda forward.”