Concern over Fenland village sewage treatment plant as Anglian Water says it is working on 'long term solutions'

Parish councillors are demanding assurances over sewage disposal in a Fenland village and they are asking MP Steve Barclay for help.

Manea parish clerk Alan Melton has penned a strongly worded letter to Anglian Water over concerns about the provision and capacity for sewage disposal in the village.

The move comes following reports from villagers that a number of lorries have been seen taking sewage away from Manea sewerage plant to another location.

Mr Melton, who has written to Peter Simpson, chief executive of Anglian Water, said: “In one day 21 lorries were counted leaving the

village.

“Members of the parish council and parishioners are concerned that the existing sewerage system may be reaching capacity. This is of particular concern as the village is growing fast, with a number of recently approved planning applications adding to concerns.”

Mr Melton said under the current Local Plan Review Manea has been classified as a growth settlement, which will encourage further large scale development in the village.

He added in the letter, a copy of which he also sent to Mr Barclay, MP for North East Cambridgeshire, “Members would like your assurance that the sewerage system is currently up to capacity and that your “future plans will take into account the growth of Manea and that you are prepared to invest in future sewage capacity?”

An Anglian Water spokesman said: “Since the beginning of lockdown we’ve seen an increase in the amount of waste water coming into our Water Recycling Centres as many people are now at home all day. Normally we would see two main peaks - before people head off to work, and then when they return in the evening. However, these patterns have changed over recent weeks and our sites are treating more used water throughout the day, and especially at weekends.

“In order to support some of our smaller, more rural sites with this increase, and ensure our customers can keep using their toilets, washing machines and other facilities as normal, we’re removing the excess treated water to other sites using tankers.

“While we are working on longer term solutions to resolve this issue, we would like to apologise to any customers who have been impacted by any increase in traffic in their local area.”