Residents raise alarm as waste leak in beauty spot could take months to fix

Lewis Smith, Local Democracy Reporter

A sewage leak located close to a south Wales nature reserve and beauty spot could take as long as two months to repair, Welsh Water has said, despite serious concerns from local residents.

A section of the Afon Kenfig river, which straddles the border between Bridgend and Neath Port Talbot County Borough, could be seen with murky waters, grey sewage deposits, and a strong smell of sewage this week after what was described as “escalated deterioration” of the sewer main.

It follows days of residents posting pictures of the river’s murky waters online, with many fearing the impact it could have for the local environment and wildlife in the area.

Visiting the site, the overpowering smell of sewage is the first thing that hits you as you approach the banks of the now murky river close to the popular Kenfig Nature Reserve.

One local environmental charity, A Peace for Nature, investigated the Afon Kenfig this month describing it as one of the worst sewage pollution incidents it had seen.

A Welsh Water spokesperson said after a previous arrangement where they were using tankers to remove the waste, they had installed a “full wastewater treatment process” at the sewage pumping station in Marlas and were assessing the impact on a daily basis.

Local fisherman Stuart Mears said he believed there had been sewage going in to the Afon Kenfig for a number of months, where it had “absolutely devastated” the river.

He said: “The river is now devoid of life. All the fish and invertebrates have died from the pumping station downwards and a lot of the bank-side creatures have left the area as well.

“This has affected around two to three miles of the river down to the sea. Local people are up in arms about it because those who use the Kenfig Nature Reserve can’t go near the river now.”

Greg Nuttgens is a trustee at the Kenfig Nature Reserve and added: “It’s very concerning for the river itself, but it also has impacts on the reserve because a lot of wildlife uses the river.”

A Welsh Water spokesperson confirmed they were currently working on a £13m project to replace the sewer main in the area though acknowledged it could take around two months to complete.

They said: “We are currently working on a £13m project to replace 4.5km of sewer main in the Kenfig and Port Talbot area to protect the local environment following the escalated deterioration of the current main.

“In the meantime, we have installed a full wastewater treatment process at Marlas Sewage Pumping Station, marking a significant improvement on previous arrangements of using tankers to remove waste.

“We are continuing to closely monitor performance and are assessing the impact of the new treatment process on a daily basis.

“In parallel to this we are laying additional sections of overland temporary pipe. Given the route goes through land owned by multiple landowners and some of it is designated as sensitive, this is taking some time.

“We anticipate it will take around two months to complete.

“We understand this may cause concern; we apologise for the impact the work is having on the local area and would like to thank our customers for bearing with us while we complete this essential work.”