Sewage capacity issues could take 20 years to address, says NI Water chief

Ms. Venning stated: “During the Price Control 21 period (2021/22 - 2026/27) NI Water plans to invest ca. £59m on Water and Wastewater services within the Derry and Strabane District Council.

“NI Water will invest £2.2billion during the PC21 period (2021/22 to 2026/27) with over £1billion being invested in wastewater assets.

"However, the full scale of the wastewater capacity issues across NI will realistically take at least 12-18 years or two to three Price Control periods, to address," she stated.

The utility company has consistently warned greater investment is needed in wastewater across the north as sewerage systems reach capacity.

Ms. Venning wrote to the council after People Before Profit Councillor Maeve O’Neill proposed that the Council write ‘to NI Water and DfI for an update on action being taken to improve the monitoring and quality of the rivers’.

In correspondence published by DC&SDC on Thursday, Ms. Venning stated: "It is therefore critical that the PC21 business plan is fully funded an all future investments will depend on the provision of funding to NI Water by the NI Executive.”

Addressing the issue of river pollution specifically Ms. Venning said NI Water has a dedicated River Basin Planning and water quality monitoring team.

She explained that spills from sewers into the environment occur during storms and heavy rainfall when overflows are necessitated to prevent flooding to homes, schools and businesses.

NI Water has installed hundreds of Event Duration Monitors to monitor overflows with hundreds more planned, she stated.

Ms. Venning warned, however, that ‘no amount of investment or work will completely stop blocked pipes if people continue to flush wipes (including those labelled as flushable), sanitary items and cotton buds down the toilet’.

"One simple way to deliver improvements in the water quality of our rivers is to reduce the abuse of the sewerage system through inappropriate flushing.

"We need out customers to help us in this battle by being mindful of what they flush, to help avoid sewer blockages and the subsequent operation of emergency overflows,” she stated.

Derry family's sewage nightmare