Bibury residents dress up to gain Thames Water's attention

Passionate protesters gathered by the river in front of Arlington Row in Bibury dressed in an array of striking costumes to highlight the sewage issue in the River Coln.

They held this demostration on April 22 because it was Earth Day.

Coln Residents Against Pollution protest in Bibury (Image: Oliver Blackwell Photography)

The costumes gained significant attention from passers-by and drivers who waved and honked in encouragement.

Demonstrators wanted to draw attention to the issue and make Thames Water think twice before releasing untreated sewage into the water.

The protest was organised by Coln Residents Against Pollution members Katie Blackwell, Ollie Blackwell and James Hooper.

One of the Coln Residents Against Pollution members dressed as a loo roll (Image: Oliver Blackwell Photography)

Ollie and Katie have a son who is eight months old and want him to grow up in a better world.

Katie said: "We grew up in this area and as children we used to regularly play in the Coln River, it was part of our playground.

"Now we won't let our children near the river as the sewage would make them ill or sick.

"Bibury is a popular tourist destination but many are oblivious to the damage the sewage is causing.

"It is destroying beautiful spots across the Cotswold and we want this issue to be addressed.

"We would love to work with Thames Water to solve this issue but it is a constant battle to get in contact with someone who works there."

Ollie said: "William Morris once described Bibury as the most beautiful village in England but sadly Thames Water are discharging sewage both upstream at Andoversford and downstream at Fairford.

"This isn’t just happening on our river, it’s happening all over the country and it’s destroying precious habitats and it must stop.

"The solution we believe is simple, build the infrastructure and stop polluting our rivers."

A spokesperson for Thames Water said: “We don’t have a storm overflow point at Bibury, however taking action on river health is a key focus for us and we want to make discharges of untreated sewage unnecessary as quickly as possible.

“We have an upgrade planned for Fairford sewage treatment works which is on the River Coln.

"This project will provide a major increase in treatment capacity, from 37.8 to 56.8 litres per second, reducing the need for untreated discharges in wet weather.

“We expect the project to be completed in 2025.

"We're also investigating the impact of groundwater on the sewer network in this area. This will help inform our long-term planning.”

A new report has been published by Thames Water today which outlines plans to upgrade over 250 sewage treatment and network sites.

In the report Chief Executive of Thames Water Sarah Bentley said: “We are under no illusions of the scale of the challenge ahead of us in improving the health of our rivers and are determined to being transparent about the actions we are taking to significantly reduce discharges.

“A report and upgraded EDM website builds on our decision earlier this year to voluntarily provide near real-time data about all discharges of untreated sewage."