'We have had enough' - south Warwickshire village up in arms as sewage continues flooding
'This has been going on for over two years and we have had enough' - said Oxhill villagers this week as a sewage outpour continues.
The residents have appealed to Severn Trent (ST) water company repeatedly but the company has still not offered a serious plan for upgrading the pumping station.
ST has had tankers parked on the Kineton to Oxhill Road since November, extracting sewage from the pumping station in a bid to contain overflows.
Their presence has created huge potholes and forced closure of the road since last week, forcing a five-mile detour around Tysoe or Whatcote.
Landowner Alastair Welford said: “The sewage works is mile from Oxhill but there is a pumping station at Oxhill. It is not adequate and not pumping the sewage through to the treatment works.
"It's grossly undersized or inefficient. Severn Trent have been fobbing us off with studies and ‘modelling’ for what's required to fix it.
“Tankering has not stopped the eruptions – the interim plan is failing. This manhole is on my land and is not a consented outfall,” he said.
"We want immediate containment and a dated timetable for the permanent fix. This is about stopping sewage escapes now, not after another two years.”
Mr Welford said Great Crested Newts – a legally protected species - are being seriously endangered by the sewage.
This morning (Monday) minutes before a BBC Midlands team arrived to film the scene, ST’s tankers departed. The crew did, however, film a ST worker removing the Road Closed signs.
"This is a serious community issue,” said Mr Welford. “Whenever it rains sewage comes spewing up through the manhole, bringing with it human waste, toilet roll and condoms. More than 60 Oxhill residents have written to the highways department about the road damage and closure and 71 have written to the Environment Agency.
"Tankers were parking beyond traffic management – even on the blind bend – taking over half the road and forcing drivers into the potholes.This has caused noise, disruption and delays for months. Customers can’t reach Oxhill businesses and farmers with machinery are having to make long diversions. It can’t go on.”
Mr Welford said the pumping station’s lack of capacity has got progressively worse with more house building and more rain. He says ST needs to make changes so it can continue to pump the volume of sewage to the treatment works a mile away.
A ST spokesperson said: “We are aware of ongoing issues of flooding in Oxhill, and have carried work across our network including lining and additional storage at the pumping station will be installed.
"These issues are down to the sheer volume of rain and surface water entering the sewer system, including in January when we had the wettest start to any year.
"The additional water is causing the network to overwhelm and flood from one manhole. We know this is deeply unpleasant, and we will work with the local authorities and landowner on a permanent solution to help manage surface water to help keep it out of the network.
"We understand our works have caused damage to the road and verges, and will ensure all affected areas are reinstated and repaired. The pumping station is not an outfall, and any suggestion that its operating with no permit is inaccurate.”