Brighton and Hove is a large resort situated on the Sussex coast of the English Channel.
Hove beach is west of the disused West Pier. The gravel slopes steeply at first but
levels off with more sand towards low water. Behind the beach there is the bustling
promenade with many resort facilities.
This bathing water could be affected by a discharge from the Albion storm overflow,
beside Brighton Pier, that can occur when heavy rainfall overwhelms the sewerage system.
This outfall is designed to protect bathing water compliance. Brighton and Hove has
Europe's largest storm water storage tunnel, 4.8km long, 6m in diameter and 30m below
ground, which is designed to restrict storm overflows from these outfalls to a frequency
of 1 in 50 years. This bathing water is included in the Surfers Against Sewage “Safer
Seas Service”. This service can alert you to Combined Storm Sewer Overflow discharges
via a phone App and in addition, it includes the Environment Agency Pollution Risk
Forecast warnings where they are available. Further details of the service can be
found at - http://www.sas.org.uk/safer-seas-service/
The Newhaven Seaford long sea outfall was commissioned in 1991, and Shoreham and Worthing
long sea outfalls in 1996. Treated sewage from Brighton and Hove is discharged from
the 1.8km Brighton Portobello outfall, to the east of the bathing water. In 1998 a
tunnel was constructed under Brighton and Hove beach to intercept and store storm
water prior to treatment. Treatment was installed at Newhaven prior to 2001and at
Shoreham sewage treatment works and Worthing sewage treatment works prior to the 2002
bathing season.
A contaminated bathing water sample result in July 2010 was investigated and Southern
Water found and repaired a blockage in the foul sewer at the junction between Bennet
Ave and Woodland Drive which was causing sewage to overflow into the surface water
drainage system.
For the four year (2015-2018) assessment period where data is available, seaweed (macroalgae)
was not assessed as being sufficient to be objectionable, but was observed as being
present on 18% of visits. This bathing water does not have a history of large amounts
of seaweed.
Modern sewerage systems have two separate systems, one takes foul sewage to sewage
treatment, the other takes rainwater runoff through surface water drains to rivers,
lakes and the sea. Misconnections occur when waste water pipes are plumbed into surface
water drains instead of the foul water sewerage system. This can give rise to pollution
when the waste water is discharged directly to the environment through the surface
water drain. For example, a washing machine or toilet may be incorrectly plumbed so
that it discharges to the surface drain rather than the foul sewage drain.
For the four year (2015-2018) assessment period where data is available, phytoplankton
(microscopic algae) was not assessed as being sufficient to be objectionable, but
was observed as being present on 11% of visits. Microscopic algae (phytoplankton)
increase in number at certain times of the year. This process is known as a phytoplankton
bloom. Blooms of phytoplankton can result in the water appearing discoloured or a
foam forming on the water.
The risks to human health from contact, ingestion or inhalation with marine algae
that currently occur in UK coastal waters are considered to be low. However, some
individuals may be more sensitive and display some reactions.
A common marine algae found in UK coastal waters is Phaeocystis, which is often mistaken
for sewage as it forms foam and a brown scum, but it is non-toxic.
Along this section of coastline there are a number of treated sewage treatment works
(Newhaven, Shoreham, Worthing) all with long sea outfalls designed to protect bathing
water compliance. The treated 1.8km outfall at Portobello was replaced by the 2.5km
Peacehaven outfall (built in 2010 to serve the new Brighton and Hove sewage treatment
works, and was comissioned in 2012). These outfalls are designed to protect bathing
water compliance.
Environment Agency samplers make observations of litter present on the beach at every
visit, this includes assessments of sewage debris, litter and tar. At Hove for the
four year (2015-2018) assessment period where data is available, sewage debris was
not noted at this site. Litter was assessed as being sufficient to be objectionable
for 1% of visits, with 16% of visits noting the presence of litter. Tarry residue
was not noted at this site.
The natural drainage (hydrological) catchment surrounding the bathing water is about
1300 hectares, but because of the porous chalk geology there are no surface water
courses. The upper catchment includes the Downs but the majority of the catchment
is the Hove area of the city.
Seaweed (macroalgae) and phytoplankton (microscopic algae) are a natural part of the
marine and freshwater environment. Below we note whether these have been recorded
in quantities sufficient to be a nuisance.
The majority of sewers in England are “combined sewers” and carry both sewage and
surface water from roofs and drains. A storm overflow operates during heavy rainfall
when the sewerage system becomes overwhelmed by the amount of surface water. The overflow
prevents sewage from backing up pipes and flooding properties and gardens. An emergency
overflow will only operate infrequently, for example due to pump failure or blockage
in the sewerage system.
Heavy rain falling on pavements and roads often flows into surface water drains or
highway drains, ending up in local rivers and ultimately the sea. The quality of bathing
water may be adversely affected as a result of such events.
It is the Environment Agency role to drive improvement of water quality at bathing
waters that are at risk of failing higher standards. It is natural for water to run
off the land to the sea. Water quality at a bathing water is dependent upon the type
and area of land (the catchment) draining to the water and the activities undertaken
in that catchment.