Stithians Parish Council, (SPC) sympathises with the plight of the residents of Hendra Road and Foundry who have had to deal with the sewage contaminated flood water and try and protect their properties from ingress. It is heart breaking to see the damage and distress exacerbated by a string of recent storms.
SPC have been lobbying SWW for over 12 years during which times isolated incidents have been reported and addressed. We have also involved our County Councillor and on occasions our MP. During this time, it has become clear that the sewage system through Stithians is not fit for purpose. The remedial actions by SWW can best be described as “sticking plaster” solutions.
In essence the sewage pipe enters the village having already picked up sewage from all the hamlets from as far away as Penmarth, together with any rain water ingress. There have been new builds in all these hamlets and of course in Stithians, further adding to the problem.
Finally, we are seeing more extreme frequent weather events (3 named storms in a week) due to the Climate crisis, a situation that is only going to get worse.
SPC call on all parties concerned to find a radical long term engineered solution to this problem. We feel that SWW need to lead on this but will need to involve the affected residents, the Environmental Agency, our MP, our County Councillor, SPC, Cormac and the community.
Radical solutions are needed. This may involve a massive upgrade of pipes & tanks in the ground in the village. Alternatively, would it be possible to by-pass Stithians with the sewage pipe serving the out lying hamlets and just let the existing Stithians infrastructure serve Stithians alone?
As well as calling on SWW to identify and implement a radical long-term solution we expect them to assist and reimburse affected residents with clean-up costs and introduce further local prevention solutions to protect homes going forward.
We are sure our community will rally around and offer affected residents any help or assistance they may require. It is still important that problems are reported to SWW and a record of contact maintained. As always, the Stithians Community Noticeboard Facebook Group has proved invaluable in keeping people informed of developments & issues.
SPC will continue to lobby all parties concerned with the sole objective of achieving a radical solution to this issue of sewage contaminated flood water once & for all.
Cllr Helen Downing – Chair of SPC