How much rain will cure hosepipe issues/canal depth/reservoir levels?

England & Wales Building Regulation were changed to reflect some of the issues noted above. Part H (Drainage) amended 2002 so priority for surface water disposal soakaways top priority; and Part G Water Efficiency (amongst other issues) new dwellings to be designed so max water usuage is 125 litres per person per day, often involving grey water tanks to flush wc's, rain water harvesting etc. However Planning consents now often require even better than this via the Code for Sustainable Homes.

Sorry if that is a bit of guff, but never thought I would be posting stuff about my job in my favourite boating forum!

IanC
Hillingdon Building Control
 
We musn't forget that Southern Water, whose leakage rate equals the water shortfall will presently be discharging millions of gallons of untreated sewage into Chichester Harbour from Apuldram.

Well done, Maggie
 
Why's that, Stoshak? Is the prospect generally known? It sounds outrageous.

...some time later...

I just read a bit from last year's Chichester Observer, about pollution in Chichester harbour...I found it here: http://www.chichester.co.uk/community/river-lavant-pollution-adding-to-harbour-problems-1-2877307#

"...19 per cent of harbour pollution was reported to come from the Apuldram works, 21 per cent from rivers – mainly the Lavant – and 60 per cent from background levels in the wider Solent or other sources in the harbour, including seabirds."

I wonder how the faithful in the RSPB will respond to allegations of bird pollution?
 
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The Southern sewage works at Apuldram is not able to cope with stormwater such as produced by even moderate rainfall. So they just tip the whole combination of stormwater and sewage into the harbour. Without warning, as far as I can see.

This convenient concession was in place at privatisation but the water companies agreed to improve the system by, I believe, ten years after that date. This, of course, would interfer with the shareholder's returns so nothing was done.

Hence they still discharge raw sewage into Chichester Harbour. Whilst telling us of their Green credentials.

And telling us it's all our fault for not taking showers, leaking taps, blah blah blah.

Sorry, I lost it a bit there.

Surfers Against Sewage will provide a bit more detail
 
Combined storm overflows are not uncommon. Many older towns were built with combined sewers that carry both foul and surface water, so the increase in flow in heavy rain is enormous and the works can't cope. A simple solution is a storm tank to store the most heavily polluted "first flush" water at the start of the storm and then to overflow the rest as it will be heavily diluted.
Of course separate sewers are better but not perfect as they suffer from rainwater infiltration and people connecting roof and garden drains to the wrong pipes. Retro fitting separate sewers is a bit like retro fitting grey water recycling or rainwater harvesting - great idea but prohibitively expensive.
 
DJE said:
Combined storm overflows are not uncommon. Many older towns were built with combined sewers that carry both foul and surface water, so the increase in flow in heavy rain is enormous and the works can't cope. A simple solution is a storm tank to store the most heavily polluted "first flush" water at the start of the storm and then to overflow the rest as it will be heavily diluted.
Of course separate sewers are better but not perfect as they suffer from rainwater infiltration and people connecting roof and garden drains to the wrong pipes. Retro fitting separate sewers is a bit like retro fitting grey water recycling or rainwater harvesting - great idea but prohibitively expensive.
Click to expand...

Not just Southern Water. That's what Thames Water does to the Thames when there's heavy rainfall. Hence, regular headlines in local press about belly-up fish.
 
Twister_Ken said:
Not just Southern Water. That's what Thames Water does to the Thames when there's heavy rainfall. Hence, regular headlines in local press about belly-up fish.
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All the water companies have spent millions on improving the quality of storm overflows. In AMP4 it was a priority in Severn Trent and maybe in other areas as well. All the storm overflows are now screened of gross solids which are returned to the flow and passed to a treatment works.
 
ghostlymoron said:
All the water companies have spent millions on improving the quality of storm overflows. In AMP4 it was a priority in Severn Trent and maybe in other areas as well. All the storm overflows are now screened of gross solids which are returned to the flow and passed to a treatment works.
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You may be right, but ask at the Thames rowing clubs and you'll find plenty of witnesses for solids after heavy rainfall.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-london-13693265
 
I would dare say there are certain insects and bacteria which would consume waste from "other sources" apart from sea birds, so when we all go to the bathroom ( not together obs ;) ) we could place our waste into a wormery we keep in the garden ?

While many homes do this today industry must also use such methods where approppiate ?
 
William Hill Weather Specials:

May Weather:

3/1 2012 Wettest May On record

5/1 Thames Water To REMOVE the hosepipe ban before end May

Diamond Jubilee:

Sunday: (June 3rd): 50/1 Thames River Pageant Cancelled Due To Stormy conditions

Monday (June 4th): 2/1 Rain On Buck Palace between 12-2 Bank Holiday Monday

Tuesday (June 5th): 100/1 Temperatures to reach 100f on the day

Olympics:
4/6 Raining During Olympic Opening Ceremony

20/1 Hundred Metres Final delayed more than 30 mins due to inclement weather

100/1 Olympic Flame Extinguished by rain.


I love the thought of the torch going out :D
 
padge said:
William Hill Weather Specials:

May Weather:

3/1 2012 Wettest May On record

5/1 Thames Water To REMOVE the hosepipe ban before end May

Diamond Jubilee:

Sunday: (June 3rd): 50/1 Thames River Pageant Cancelled Due To Stormy conditions

Monday (June 4th): 2/1 Rain On Buck Palace between 12-2 Bank Holiday Monday

Tuesday (June 5th): 100/1 Temperatures to reach 100f on the day

Olympics:
4/6 Raining During Olympic Opening Ceremony

20/1 Hundred Metres Final delayed more than 30 mins due to inclement weather

100/1 Olympic Flame Extinguished by rain.


I love the thought of the torch going out :D
Click to expand...




When you unravel the olympic Logo that looks like a runner or summat! and think of each component as a letter and put them in order including the big dot you get the word "zion"

:D
 
ghostlymoron said:
All the water companies have spent millions on improving the quality of storm overflows. In AMP4 it was a priority in Severn Trent and maybe in other areas as well. All the storm overflows are now screened of gross solids which are returned to the flow and passed to a treatment works.
Click to expand...

Plenty of shreddies and scummies to be seen coming down from the works area around Dell Quay over past few days. I grant you the passion fish seem to be extinct in recent times.

Brian
 
dancrane said:
I suppose there's some good reason why towns which are anywhere near the sea, don't have vast quantities of lightly-filtered seawater pumped into a main supply, for flushing lavatories?

Umm...what is that reason? Briny cisterns seem an obvious answer to cutting fresh water usage.
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In Hong Kong in the 1980s seawater was used for toilet flushing....
 
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