Edinburgh sewage spill

[Kymba]

The ongoing major discharge of raw sewage into the Firth of Forth was a "disaster waiting to happen", according to furious residents.

Engineers are still attempting to stem the flow of waste and officials are warning people to avoid contact with the water.
It is estimated as many as 100 million litres of sewage have been discharged since a pump failed on Friday at Edinburgh's Seafield Wastewater Treatment Plant.
A thousand litres of raw sewage every second have been pouring into the Forth because of the fault.
Thames Water, which operates the works on behalf of Scottish Water, said it had not shut the plant down as it deals with most of the Scottish capital's waste - from about 800,000 people.
Rob Kirkwood, chairman of Leith Links Residents' Association, told BBC Radio Scotland's Sunday Live: "We're extremely angry, but not surprised.
"We've been telling the Labour and Lib Dem government and Edinburgh Council that Seafield is a disaster waiting to happen.
"It (the sewage works) has an infrastructure that is basically third world technology."
Edinburgh City Council's environmental health officers are now advising anyone who uses waterfront recreational areas to stay away.
They should also wash their hands after each visit and refrain from picking up or eating any fish or shellfish from the area.

[thunder]

Things never seem to change. When I lived in Edinburgh the beaches would regularly be covered in 'stuff' and the things you could see floating in the water don't bear describing. An official water man told us (unofficially) that he would not set foot in the Firth of Forth till he got past North Berwick. That was a long time ago. Mind you, it was 'acceptable' then to pump sewage into rivers etc.

henrya

[Paul mabbott]

Why Thames Water ? The last people I'd trust with my river! Does anyone remember the sewage into the Thames problem a couple of years ago?

Originally Posted by Kymba

..............Thames Water, which operates the works on behalf of Scottish Water, said it had not shut the plant down as it deals with most of the Scottish capital's waste - from about 800,000 people.

[Kymba]

Originally Posted by Paul mabbott

Why Thames Water ? The last people I'd trust with my river! Does anyone remember the sewage into the Thames problem a couple of years ago?

Don't Know. Long way from London to Scotland And yes I remember that.. is that why London water rates are so high. to pay them to go to Scotland to mend a leak ????

[Paul mabbott]

Mind you, it might be worse. There's always Yorkshire Water who did the impossible by giving us a drought in Yorkshire while the rest of the country had no problems!
They don't even claim to know anything about water and sewage systems. After about ten years of a problem which flooded the local park, cricket pitch and River Sheaf with sewage at regular intervals, they gave in and said, 'We are calling in the experts ...'. There was a time when the water boards were the experts!

Originally Posted by Kymba

Don't Know. Long way from London to Scotland And yes I remember that.. is that why London water rates are so high. to pay them to go to Scotland to mend a leak ????

[John D]

Originally Posted by Kymba

Don't Know. Long way from London to Scotland And yes I remember that.. is that why London water rates are so high. to pay them to go to Scotland to mend a leak ????

Yes it is a long way. This is the result of the privatisation of 'service utilities'.
For example, Scottish Power has recently been taken over by Iberdrola a Spanish Company leaving only one electricity company still in 'British ownership'. Just wait ALL rates will become higher.
John D