Why Are We Still Dumping Raw Sewage Into Our Rivers & What Can We Do About It?
It’s a shocking reality in 2025: water companies across the UK continue to discharge millions of tons of untreated sewage into our rivers and seas each year. Despite growing public outrage, hefty fines, and criminal investigations, these practices persist — raising urgent questions about how our water systems are managed, and what role we as individuals can play in alleviating the crisis.
The State of Our Waterways: Fines, Investigations, But Still Pollution
In just the last 30 days:
Thames Water was fined £123 million by Ofwat for long-running sewage leaks and paying shareholders dividends while failing environmental standards. The regulator highlighted persistent spills from storm overflows and treatment works.
81 criminal investigations are underway, targeting water companies (including Thames and Anglian) for illegal sewage discharges and operational failures. This is the most extensive crackdown ever seen.
New Environment Agency data revealed that in 2024 alone, UK water companies discharged untreated sewage for a staggering 3.6 million hours — that’s equivalent to 411 years of continuous pollution.
These figures should be unthinkable in a country such as a the United Kingdom. Yet systemic underinvestment and decades of lenient oversight have left us with ageing networks unable to cope, especially during heavy rain when combined sewer systems overflow, sending raw sewage directly into our rivers.
So Why Does It Keep Happening?
Our wastewater systems combine household sewage with rainwater runoff. During heavy downpours, storm drains fill rapidly. To prevent backing up into homes, these mixed flows are often diverted directly into rivers — untreated.
This isn’t just a failure of policy or enforcement. It’s also a design limitation from a time when such overflows were meant to be rare. Now, with climate change causing more intense storms and urban areas covered in hard surfaces that channel even more rain into drains, these “relief valves” are opening far too frequently.
How Can You Help? Start By Reducing Stormwater Runoff.
While fixing Britain’s wastewater crisis will require billions in upgrades and much tougher regulation, there is something meaningful households can do right now: reduce the volume of rainwater flowing into those overstressed storm drains.
By installing a rainwater harvesting system, particularly one with large tank capacitiy such as the ThinTanks 1000Lt or 2000Lt Tanks, you capture and store rain, instead of letting it rush down gutters and into overloaded pipes. This not only saves mains water for your own garden and saves you money by reducing your water bills - it directly eases the burden on sewer networks, reducing the chance they’ll overflow and dump untreated sewage into the environment.
Why ThinTanks Make This Simple & Effective
Traditional round water butts are small, often holding just 100-200 litres, and can be awkward in modern gardens. ThinTanks are different. These slimline, modular tanks fit neatly along fences or walls, turning underused spaces into large-scale rainwater storage.
Available in 1,000-litre and 2,000-litre sizes, ThinTanks let you capture thousands of litres every time it rains which means:
Less rain ends up flooding storm drains.
More water for your garden during hosepipe bans.
A tangible, personal step in helping reduce raw sewage discharges.
Imagine if just 1 in 10 homes installed a 2,000-litre ThinTank. That would keep millions of litres of rainwater out of the sewers, helping prevent the exact overflow events that send sewage into our rivers.
It’s A Small Change That Adds Up.
No one homeowner can solve the sewage crisis. But by taking responsibility for the rain that falls on our own roofs, we can collectively reduce the volume of stormwater overwhelming our pipes. Every litre you capture is a litre that doesn’t push the system toward dumping waste into our precious rivers and seas.
Ready to Help? Start Harvesting Today.
ThinTanks are more than just a clever way to water your garden — they’re a practical tool for anyone who cares about our rivers, seas, wildlife, public health and their garden. As water companies scramble under fines and investigations to fix decades of neglect, let’s not wait. Together, we can make small but powerful changes that ease pressure on our ageing infrastructure.
Discover how ThinTanks can turn your home into part of the solution. Your garden will thank you and so will the rivers and seas. Click here for more information