Clean Harbours Partnership update

Published 09:11 on 2 Mar 2023

Water quality in our harbours has been suffering due to so-called 'storm discharges' from sewage works around the harbour. ESC and other clubs (including ESSC) have contributed to the Clean Harbours Partnership (CHP), a Citizen Science group which was set up to analyse what is in our water and better understand any links with the declining marine ecosystem. Click here to go to their website.

This group includes sailing clubs, canoe clubs and resident associations from around both Chichester and Langstone harbours, representing some 35,000 members.

It has co-funded a research project run by Brunel and Portsmouth Universities. Sailing club members collected some 400 water samples, as well as 5 aquatic species which the University scientists are analysing. Primarily they are looking for about 500 chemicals which could be traced back to farming, sewage discharges or industry. Full findings are due in the first half of 2023, followed by a peer-reviewed scientific paper later in the year. Research is designed to bring evidence to the local and national debate and to help pressurise change.

Southern Water (SW) continues to allow sewage to spill into the harbour whenever it rains. According to their own data, SW has dumped over 2,000 hours worth of untreated wastewater into the two harbours since last October. Many will recall untreated sewage being discharged in the middle of Fed Week on 9/10 August 2021 and more recently, CHP found levels of E. coli to be 7300 cfu/100ml in Emsworth and 380,000 at Langstone on 15 November 2022. Such readings were particularly high as they followed heavy rainfall (and therefore storm discharges) but by comparison, the safe swimming limit from the EU Bathing Water Directive is 500 cfu/100ml. This was right in the middle of our Hare and Hounds series, the most popular dinghy racing series of the year. It is putting dinghy sailors, kayakers and swimmers at risk of illness.

SW can fix this by spending tens of millions on our four local sewage works Thornham, Bosham, Apuldram and Langstone (Budds farm) - as well as Lavant, from where wastewater flows down into the harbour. The pressure is starting to work as SW has already committed to upgrading Apuldram, Lavant and Budds Farm but there is still a lot more to be done. Indeed, the jury is out whether they are fixing the situation or simply putting a temporary 'sticking plaster' on a much larger problem.

There is a protest against Southern Water dumping untreated sewage into Chichester Harbour (see below). It is organised by the Mayday action group. Last time there was extensive TV coverage on South Today and Meridian.

When: Saturday 25 March, 10:00-12:00 hours.

Location: Emsworth roundabout

If you care about preserving beautiful Chichester harbour, please attend... your voice matters. I would encourage Club members to carry a banner saying ENOUGH!

Rob Bailey