Sewage Discharges (Monitoring)

– in the Scottish Parliament at on 18 May 2023.

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Photo of Alex Cole-Hamilton Alex Cole-Hamilton Liberal Democrat

3. To ask the First Minister for what reason only 4 per cent of Scotland’s sewage discharge points are monitored, compared with 91 per cent in England. (S6F-02135)

Photo of Humza Yousaf Humza Yousaf Scottish National Party

Our approach to assessing sewage discharges is more effective than that in England. Scottish Water has completed a more extensive environmental study programme to monitor and model the impacts of its facilities on water quality. Data from monitoring is also being used to determine any actions needed to improve Scotland’s water environment. Scottish Water has already invested £686 million since 2010 in improvements, and has committed a further £500 million during 2021 to 2027. That has contributed to the Scottish Environment Protection Agency’s most recent classification, which shows that 66 per cent of Scotland’s water bodies are in good ecological condition, which compares with just 16 per cent in England. That is in line with aims to achieve 81 per cent by 2027.

Photo of Alex Cole-Hamilton Alex Cole-Hamilton Liberal Democrat

The problem for the First Minister in relation to the money that he has identified for those extra monitors is that 70 per cent of all dumping point pipes will still go unobserved whereas, in England, every pipe is due to be monitored by the end of this year. When on earth will we catch up?

Look at what we have discovered in the last few weeks: human waste dumped around Scotland’s best loved beaches, wetlands of international importance and special protection areas from Shetland to the Clyde. The First Minister should take particular interest in the most-used sewage dumping outlet in Scotland, which recorded 127 releases last year—enough to run 100 million baths. He will know that site well, because it is on the bank of the Clyde in his Glasgow Pollok constituency—perhaps that is why he moved to Broughty Ferry.

Will the First minister commit today to the introduction of legally binding targets to tackle sewage dumping in Scotland?

The First Minister:

I moved to Broughty Ferry so that my step-daughter could see her father more often. That is the reason why I moved there, and that is not a state secret by any stretch of the imagination.

On the serious issue that Alex Cole-Hamilton raised, we know that combined sewer overflows are a serious issue, and he was right to raise them in his question. However, they are also integral to ensuring that sewers do not, during periods of heavy rainfall, back up and end up flooding homes, businesses and streets throughout our country.

Our monitoring is more comprehensive, and I would be happy to provide Alex Cole-Hamilton with more detail on that. I have the detail of the monitoring that Scottish Water has done, and I can send it to him. That was done over a number of years, and it allows us to comprehensively monitor where the spill overflows are happening. Scottish Water is not just sitting on its hands or resting on its laurels. It has published “Improving Urban Waters—Route Map”, which outlines how we intend to invest in the Scottish water environment. A number of projects are currently under way to monitor and ensure that we make improvements to our sewer network. We take the issue extremely seriously.

I will end on the point that I started on, in response to Alex Cole-Hamilton’s first question. Notwithstanding the very serious issues that he has raised, our water quality in Scotland is very good. SEPA’s most recent classification shows that 66 per cent of Scotland’s water bodies are in good ecological condition compared with 16 per cent in England. We aim to improve that to 81 per cent by 2027.

Photo of Mercedes Villalba Mercedes Villalba Labour

Scotland’s natural environment is not just the envy of the world; it is vital to our health. Therefore, it is no surprise that reports of more than 14,000 sewage spills have prompted protests across the country, including one this Saturday in Stonehaven, which is in my region. In December 2021, Scottish Water vowed to increase the number of storm drain monitors to more than 1,000 by the end of 2024. However, according to a freedom of information response obtained by the i newspaper, as of 1 March this year, not a single new device had been installed. Can the First Minister tell us exactly how many of those 1,000 storm drain monitors he expects to be installed by the end of this year?

The First Minister:

Of course, it was always the plan that the installation programme would take place over the course of summer 2023 and into 2024. We are still confident, and Scottish Water remains confident, that we will have those 1,000 spill monitors in place by the end of 2024. I would be happy to provide Mercedes Villalba with further detail on that if she wishes.

I go back to the point that there has been comprehensive monitoring. Scottish Water did studies between 2015 and 2021. We have extensive computer models that can allow Scottish Water to understand when the combined sewer overflows will spill—under what rainfall conditions, for example—and what impact those spills will have on the natural environment. There is a whole host of data, because of the excellent and extensive work that Scottish Water has done.

To answer Ms Villalba’s question directly, we are still confident that 1,000 spill monitors will be installed by the end of 2024.