Severn Trent launches multi-million pound scheme to reduce storm overflow spills

Severn Trent has launched a multi-million pound scheme across its region which aims to reduce the number of spills from storm overflows by 20%.

A total of 900 locations across the Midlands are being targeted in addition to its existing programme to improve both river health and its wastewater network, bringing total investment for 2024/25 to £450 million. It follows a £1 billion equity raise late last year.

In 2023, a year which saw exceptional rainfall, the company reported more than 60,000 spills from storm overflows – an increase of more than a third.

Among the c.1,000 solutions being delivered by the company, 700 new storage solutions will be installed at treatment works to capture and store more flows during periods of high rainfall.

Furthermore, a large-scale trial will supply 8,000 free water butts across 10 communities to reduce surface water going into drains.

Other initiatives include:

• New ‘nature based’ solutions including the creation of more than 70 reed beds to treat sewage at the storm route for storm overflows;
• 25 treatment units to expand the treatment capacity through the additional processes, dramatically reducing spills;
• 198 enhancements to increase the flow of sewage to treatment works;
• 130 FLAP valves that prevent river ingress into the network, which would otherwise overload the capacity of sewers with river water, and;
• 300 expert engineers and data scientists working in a Zero Spills Hub dedicated to storm overflow improvements.

Severn Trent boss Liv Garfield said: “Our customers have told us they want us to reduce spills from storm overflows and we have promised to go as quickly as possible to deliver that.

“This is why we’ve had an army of 300 engineers and data scientists working around the clock to test and trial a whole range of capital schemes to reduce spills from storm overflows – with the first storage tanks already in and to be delivered at pace each week.

“Behind the scenes we’ve been working flat out to find new and agile ways of delivering complex capital schemes much quicker. At our peak we’ll be building up to 40 tanks a week. We won’t stop working on this until we’ve delivered on our targets.

“Since we launched Get River Positive two years ago, we’ve already made large-scale infrastructure improvements. Our share of impact on the health of our region’s rivers has fallen to 14% and we are confident this time next year our impact will have fallen to 10%. This will mean that 9 in 10 reasons for rivers in the Midlands not achieving good ecological status will be down to other sectors.”