Sewage was spilled from storm overflow drains into England’s rivers, lakes and seas at least once every two minutes last year, new figures show. In 2025, the Environment Agency recorded nearly 300,000 incidents of untreated sewage spilling into waterways, which should only occur in “exceptional circumstances” to prevent sewers backing up into homes during heavy rainfall.
The figures show 291,492 spills in 2025, down 35% from 450,398 in 2024, and total spill duration nearly halved from 3.61 million hours to 1.9 million hours. The Environment Agency said much of the improvement was due to unusually dry conditions in 2025, which left much of England battling drought, compared with a very wet 2024.
Water minister Emma Hardy said there was “still an unacceptable amount of sewage entering our waterways”. A spokesperson for industry body Water UK acknowledged the role of drier weather but said a tripling of water company investment was also starting to have an effect.
However, campaign group Surfers Against Sewage said its analysis of Environment Agency data showed more than 187,000 hours of spills on “dry days” in 2025, when overflows should not be discharging, affecting 105 bathing waters. It also warned that it had issued 3,899 sewage alerts on its Safer Seas and Rivers Service app so far in 2026, more than double the number for the same period last year.
Environment Agency chairman Alan Lovell said: “While these numbers are heavily influenced by rainfall levels in 2025, substantial reductions in spill duration and events are a clear win for people and the environment.” He added that the agency will continue to hold water companies to account where performance falls short.
