Sewage is pouring into rivers inside national parks at twice the rate occurring outside these protected areas, according to a report by the Campaign for National Parks (CNP) and the Rivers Trust. Campaigners described the situation as “outrageous”, saying waters in England and Wales’ national parks should be the cleanest and most protected in the country.
The report found 464 water company overflow sites inside national parks, with an average spill duration of 549 hours per site in 2024 – equivalent to eight hours a day for two months. In total, there were 254,808 hours of sewage outflows in national parks last year. More than half of the rivers in national parks failed to meet the good ecological status required by law, with slurry and fertiliser runoff from farms and toxic pesticides also contributing to the problem.
The worst-affected national parks were Dartmoor, the South Downs, the Broads and Eryri (Snowdonia). In Dartmoor, the average hours of overflow per combined sewage overflow (CSO) was three times that outside national parks; in the South Downs and Broads it was 2.9 times, the New Forest 2.6 times and Eryri 2.4 times. The Lymington River in the New Forest suffered 2,800 hours of sewage outflows in 2024. Only two of the 13 national parks – Northumbria and North York Moors – had spill rates better than the rest of the country.
Dr Rose O’Neill, chief executive of the CNP, said: “National park rivers are being poisoned, drained and neglected – if we can’t protect these, we can’t claim to be serious about ending the UK’s water crisis. This outrageous level of sewage reflects ageing and poorly maintained infrastructure that is ill-designed and undersized to cope with actual resident and visitor populations.” David Johnson, technical director at the Rivers Trust, added: “This data presents a tragic tale of underinvestment and mismanagement of the rivers that flow across our most iconic landscapes.”
The campaigners are urging the government to bring forward stricter regulations promised in January, and to ensure all sewage treatment works in national parks are upgraded to the same standard required in more populated areas. A spokesperson for the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs said the government is taking action to clean up England’s rivers, lakes and seas, with over £104bn of private investment to rebuild sewage pipes and slash pollution levels in half.
