Councillors have backed calls to tackle pollution in York’s rivers after hearing the River Foss is one of the worst affected in Europe by one measure.
A scientist, conservationist and activists told councillors the amount of sewage, chemicals and other pollutants in the rivers Ouse and Foss was unacceptable and a scandal.
City of York Council’s Labour environment spokesperson Cllr Jenny Kent said tougher wastewater treatment rules were needed while her Liberal Democrat counterpart Cllr Paula Widdowson said industry incentives had to change.
But Conservative Cllr Chris Steward said the call did not go far enough in looking at what the council could do locally and instead amounted to virtue-signalling.
Cllr Kent’s motion was backed by councillors last Thursday (6 November).
Data from Parliament showed spills from wastewater storm overflows into the River Ouse in and around York lasted a total of 24,872 hours in 2024.
Councillors heard it compared to more than 16,000 hours in 2023.
Spills into the River Foss along the stretch from the Syke to the Ouse lasted 3,594 hours last year.
In 2023, hundreds of fish were found dead along a large stretch of the Foss. Councillors said the deaths could have been caused by raw sewage pollution
Cllr Kent’s motion calls for laws mirroring EU rules aiming to prevent pollution and for a ban on ‘forever chemicals’ that linger in water systems.
It also calls for investment in the country’s sewage and drainage infrastructure and measures to limit the amount wastewater being discharged and improve incident response times.
Dr John Wilkinson, a scientist at the University of York, said that although the city was known for its beauty and heritage, its rivers were another story.
The scientist, who researches chemical pollution in rivers, told councillors: “The River Foss is the most polluted river across Europe for pharmaceutical contaminants, that’s heart-breaking.
“Our rivers are a reflection of York and pollution reflects the many pressures of modern life, the motion represents a vital step in looking to the future.”
Mike Gray, of the River Foss Society, said the organisation’s latest study of the state of the waterway showed it was far from healthy.
Chris Copland, of York Friends of the Earth, said sewage run off was masking a complex mix of chemicals from farm pesticides, road run off and packaging going into rivers.
Green Party activist Ben Ffrench said unacceptable amounts of sewage and other pollutants being dumped in rivers stemmed from abuses of corporate power at the taxpayer’s expense.
Conservative group leader Cllr Steward said the creation of sustainable drainage systems, awareness campaigns and several other measures could be taken locally rather than merely writing letters to the Government.
Opposition Liberal Democrat Cllr Widdowson said industry incentives needed to move away from dividends and bonuses and focus companies on protecting the environment.
Labour’s environment executive member Cllr Kent said the city did not need to wait for tragedy to try and work to improve the state of its rivers.
She added she was happy to work on local solutions in response to Cllr Steward.
The debate comes after the Government announced plans to scrap the current industry regulator Ofwat in the summer.
The Labour government’s Environment Secretary Steve Reed said it would be replaced with a single, powerful body aimed at tackling pollution in the biggest overhaul of regulations in a generation.
Industry body Water UK said the current system failed in part by suppressing investment and it was confident record spending of £104bn over the next five years would bring improvements.
