Government may have broken law over sewage – watchdog – BBC News
‘The UK’s environment watchdog suspects the government and regulators have broken the law over how it regulates sewage releases.’
BBC News, 12th September 2023
Source: www.bbc.co.uk
Category: sewerage
Cardiff: Hailey Park sewage pumping station legal bid starts – BBC News
‘A judicial review of plans to build a sewage pumping station in a popular park has begun.’
BBC News, 29th June 2023
Source: www.bbc.co.uk
High Court agrees to hear ancient common law argument in claim government sewage overflow plan is unlawful – Local Government Lawyer
‘The High Court has agreed to hear two judicial review claims of the government’s plan to reduce the discharge of untreated sewage into bodies of water in England, including one claim which argues a seven hundred-year-old common law right has been ignored.’
Local Government Lawyer, 15th February 2023
Source: www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk
Claimants say Government sewage overflow plan contrary to ancient common law rights in pre-action letter – Local Government Lawyer
‘A surfer and an oyster supplier have joined with the Good Law Project to threaten a judicial review of a Government plan they argue will allow the discharge of untreated sewage into water bodies to continue for decades, breaching their “ancient” common law rights under the Public Trust Doctrine (PTD).’
Local Government Lawyer, 31st October 2022
Source: www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk
Conservationists seek judicial review of UK sewage discharge plan – The Guardian
‘The UK government’s plan to cut millions of hours of raw sewage discharges by water companies each year is facing a judicial review on the grounds that it is unlawful.’
The Guardian, 31st August 2022
Source: www.theguardian.com
Prosecution sees pub and landlord fined for “sewer abuse” – Local Government Lawyer
‘A pub and its landlord have been fined more than £16,000 for allowing cooking fat and oil to enter a town’s sewer network, in a landmark case brought by Thames Water.’
Local Government Lawyer, 22nd March 2021
Source: www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk
Thames Water fined £20m for sewage spill – BBC News
‘Thames Water has been fined a record £20m after pumping nearly 1.5 billion litres of untreated sewage into the River Thames.’
BBC News, 22nd March 2017
Source: www.bbc.co.uk
Southern Water fined record £2m for sewage leak on Kent beaches – The Guardian
‘Southern Water has been fined a record £2m for flooding beaches in Kent with raw sewage, leaving them closed to the public for nine days.’
The Guardian, 19th December 2016
Source: www.guardian.co.uk
Nor any drop to drink – Nearly Legal
‘Jones v London Borough of Southwark [2016] EWHC 457 (Ch). Quite a lot of councils have agreements with water suppliers under which the council will collect water charges from their tenants, effectively as an addition to the rent. This case concerned a challenge to the nature and validity of Southwark’s agreement, at least before 2013.’
Nearly Legal, 5th March 2016
Source: www.nearlylegal.co.uk/blog/
Court rules council overcharged 37,000 tenants for water and sewerage – Local Government Lawyer
‘A London borough has overcharged approximately 37,000 tenants for water and sewerage services, a High Court judge has ruled.’
Local Government Lawyer, 4th March 2016
Source: www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk
Water companies are public authorities and must therefore disclose environmental information – UK Human Rights Blog
‘Water and sewage utility companies are “public authorities” for the purposes of the environmental information regulations, and are bound by them accordingly, the Administrative Appeals Chamber of the Upper Tribunal has ruled.’
UK Human Rights Blog, 16th April 2015
Source: www.ukhumanrightsblog.com
Southwark to bring judicial review over plans for ‘super-sewer’ for London – Local Government Lawyer
‘Southwark Council has applied to the High Court to bring judicial review proceedings over ministers’ approval of plans for the so-called ‘super-sewer’ in London.’
Local Government Lawyer, 3rd November 2014
Source: www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk
Manchester Ship Canal Co Ltd v United Utilities Water plc (Canal & River Trust and others intervening); Same and another v Same (Same intervening) – WLR Daily
‘Under the Water Industry Act 1991 sewerage undertakers were impliedly empowered to discharge surface water and other non-pollutant water into private watercourses to which they were already discharging at the time the Act came into force, but had no right to create new outfalls into such watercourses without the agreement of their owners.’
WLR Daily, 2nd July 2014
Source: www.iclr.co.uk
The Manchester Ship Canal Company Ltd and another (Respondents) v United Utilities Water Plc (Appellant) – Supreme Court
Supreme Court, 2nd July 2014
Barratt Homes Ltd v Dŵr Cymru Cyfyngedig (Welsh Water) (No. 2) – WLR Daily
“The breach by a sewerage undertaker of its duty under section 106 of the Water Industry Act 1991 to permit connection of a private sewer to the public sewer did not give rise to a liability in nuisance.”
WLR Daily, 27th March 2013
Source: www.iclr.co.uk
Ruling on unintentional sewage leaks liability should lead firms to review prevention efforts, says expert – OUT-LAW.com
“Companies responsible for the operation of the sewer networks in England and
Wales can be found criminally liable for unlicensed depositing of controlled
waste even where that deposit of waste is unintentional, the High Court has
ruled.”
OUT-LAW.com, 27th March 2013
Source: www.out-law.com
Regina (Thames Water Utilities Ltd) v Bromley Magistrates’ Court (No 2) – WLR Daily
An unintended escape of sewage amounted to a “deposit” for the purpose of an offence under section 33(1)(a) of the Environmental Protection Act 1990.
WLR Daily, 20th March 2013
Source: www.iclr.co.uk
The Manchester Ship Canal Co Ltd and another v United Utilities Water plc – WLR daily
“The implied power of sewerage undertakers to discharge the contents of sewers via their outfalls onto third party property without the owner’s consent had not passed to their successor companies under the transfer scheme entered into as part of the privatisation process implemented under the Water Act 1989.”
WLR Daily, 7th February 2013
Source: www.iclr.co.uk
Barratt Homes Ltd v Dwr Cymru Cyfyngedig (Welsh Water) – WLR Daily
Barratt Homes Ltd v Dwr Cymru Cyfyngedig (Welsh Water) [2009] UKSC 13; [2009] WLR (D) 360
“S 106 of the Water Industry Act 1991 gave a property developer a right to connect its private sewer to the public sewer at a point of its choosing even though such a connection would overload the capacity of the sewer as it currently existed.”
WLR Daily, 11th December 2009
Source: www.lawreports.co.uk
Please note once a case has been fully reported in one of the ICLR series the corresponding WLR Daily summary is removed.
