Pressure is being put on Pembrokeshire County Council to step in and get its hands dirty to prosecute Dŵr Cymru/Welsh Water for potentially jeopardising Tenby’s summer season, after a burst pipe at the seaside town’s pumping station which had previously been identified as dodgy, wasn’t dealt with effectively, leading to levels of sewage entering the River Ritec...but will the Local Authority have the brass to take them on?

In light of Welsh Water stating that it is no rush to replace the faulty fixture, calls have been made by County councillor for Tenby’s north ward Michael Williams to the Council’s chief executive and public protection manager strongly urging action be taken, due to what he called a ‘totally inept enforcement regime’ in Natural Resources Wales in not coming down hard enough on this ‘failing’ water operator.

“It’s no longer good enough to stand on the sidelines wringing our hands and looking towards well meaning individuals to have yet another meeting,” stated Cllr Williams.

“Our local tourist industry relies upon statutory bodies to provide the basic services, and this must include clean bathing waters, the reputational damage done is considerable.

“Not many years ago we took action to insist that a UV plant was installed in the Gumfreston pumping station. Those of us involved in that campaign honestly believed at that time the company was intent on raising their standards.

Pembrokeshire County council installed signage to alert members of the public of the possible pollution impact at Tenby South Beach, Castle Beach, Tenby North Beach and Penally Beach.
Pembrokeshire County Council installed signage to warn members of the public over the pollution alert - but they were nothing more than laminated pieces of A4 paper, with text stating ‘do not enter the water at this time’ - hardly noticeable unless you studied the small print up close! (Observer pic)

“It appears that yet again the wool was pulled over our eyes!” he added.

Town councllor and chair of the Tenby Clean Seas group Duncan Whitehurst also remarked: “Sometimes, it feels like we are wading through untreated waste when we dive deep into the data to determine what Dŵr Cymru is doing!”

It was noticeable that Pembrokeshire Council, despite putting warning signs up around beaches (which amounted to nothing more than laminated pieces of A4 paper, with text stating ‘do not enter the water at this time’ - hardly noticeable unless you studied the small print up close) didn’t publicise the alert on its social media accounts.

Talk about trying to bury bad news...or wash it away, especially embarrassing since the pollution alert was put out on the same day that PCC were bigging up its award-winning ‘Blue Flag’ beaches for 2024, and the fact that North Beach had its reinstated, which had been taken away due to...you guessed it, visible pollution found in the sea from sewage.