CALSTOCK campaigning group Drip Drip received a visit from South East Cornwall MP Anna Gelderd to discuss the water quality in the Tamar.

The meeting covered a lot of ground with the MP spending a couple of hours discussing their work and the threats facing the river.

A spokesperson said: “We’ve been sampling for 40 weeks now and our picture of what’s happening has grown. We raised the obvious issues of sewage and the continued use of CSOs (combined sewer overflow) spilling untreated waste into the river, and South West Water’s plans to carry on with this until 2040 and beyond.

“Most people are understandably horrified at the thought of swimming in human waste.

“What’s less well known is the hidden stuff that comes with it: ‘forever chemicals’, pharmaceuticals, hormones, household chemicals; all dumped in the river, with treatment works having no way to filter them out if they even get that far.”

Deep in conversation with the MP, the group expressed their concerns about sewage but also hidden 'forever chemicals' in the water they say treatment doesn't remove.
Deep in conversation with the MP, the group expressed their concerns about sewage but also hidden 'forever chemicals' in the water they say treatment doesn't remove. (Anna Gelderd)

The group discussed that water should be in public ownership - and how the Cunliffe Report, published in July this year, didn’t really get to the root of the profit motive. The Independent Water Commission’s report sets out recommendations for reform to improve the water sector regulatory system in England and Wales.

The MP has already written to the Environment Minister using their data to press for urgent action.

“We felt she was genuinely interested in water quality and that we were properly listened to,” they added.

“My recent visit with Drip Drip and the Environment Agency was another reminder that local people want the rivers on their doorstep to be clean and safe,” said Ms Gelderd. “Previously, I grilled Susan Davy, the former CEO of South West Water, before she stepped down on the company’s responsibility to clean up Cornish waterways rather than prioritise profit. I’ll be holding the new CEO to account in just the same way.”