Bude Cleaner Seas
Bude Cleaner Seas was a national pilot project delivered by the Environment Agency. It sought to engage Bude’s community in addressing the causes of poor quality bathing water at the local beach. Essential Sewage Systems:
- Helped campsite owners to improve their infrastructure and understand the impact their sites can have on water courses leading to the sea.
- Undertook drainage inspections and inspections of private sewage systems in rural areas beyond main drainage.
- Visited local hotels and retailers, offering advice on the correct disposal of fats, oils and grease, and highlighted the links between roadside drainage and bathing water quality.
- Held pop-up information points in town centres and at local agricultural shows.
- Gave help and advice to residents about their own sewer connections.
- Initiated a campaign of ‘Yellow Fish’markers on storm drains within Bude, reminding people not to pollute storm drains.
The involvement of Essential Sewage Systems was instrumental in helping to ensure that bathing water quality at Bude’s beaches improved from a rating of ‘Poor’ in 2012 to ‘Excellent’ in 2016.
Looe, Helston, Liskeard
Again, working with the Environment Agency and Cornwall Wildlife Trust, Essential Sewage Systems rolled-out Yellow Fish campaigns in Looe, Helston and Liskeard. We encouraged the involvement of youth groups, Scouts and local schools, helping young people to identify drains at risk of pollution and to spray paint the yellow fish markers on kerbsides. Our work brought environmental issues to life for young people and led to improvements in water quality at water courses and beaches.
Our staff have also undertaken pro bono work on Cornwall Wildlife Trust’s Head Office sewage system, demonstrating our personal commitment to help the environment.
We have converted many old, high energy consuming sewage treatment plants into energy efficient plants, extending operating life and ensuring that existing architecture is preserved and utilised wherever possible, whilst improving discharge quality.
Riverfly
In their own time, members of staff often take part in other environmental projects. Riverfly surveying, run by the Riverfly Partnership, is one linked very closely with the sewage treatment industry. It involves kick sampling rivers in various locations and recording the species found. This is vital to find out the conditions of the rivers as the species living, or those which become absent there, can be an early indication to pollution.