Southern Water insists its use of outfall pipes off the Isle of Wight, in the last 24 hours, did not necessarily impact our bathing waters.

However, a discharge from its Sandown 1 pipe, lasting 19 hours, between the evening of Friday September 30 and the afternoon of Saturday October 1, was likely to have affected the water close to Bembridge, Sandown, and Whitecliff Bay.

Similarly, both a 40 minute discharge (at about midnight, on October 1), and a 3 hour discharge (from around 8.30pm, on Friday), were thought to have had an impact on water quality at Yaverland.

Cowes' Terminus Road 2 pipe also discharged what Southern Water insists is 95 per cent rainwater, for around 50 minutes this morning (Sunday), affecting the shoreline at the mouth of the River Medina, as well as Gurnard, Egypt Point and near Osborne Bay.

Off Ryde, what Southern Water's Beachbuoy monitoring site logs as a 43 hour discharge, between Friday and Sunday, from the Appley Park Transfer pipe, was also described as 'genuine'.

Friday, September 30, was the final day of the bathing season, during which water quality is monitored by the Environment Agency.

What has the Isle of Wight's MP said about the use of outfall pipes?

In his most recent statement, Isle of Wight MP Bob Seely said any discharge was bad and posted on Twitter: "Government is taking action to significantly reduce sewage discharges from storm overflows - and it is the first government to do so."

Defra plans to tackle the use of outfall pipes - but how?

Last month, Defra launched what it calls the "largest infrastructure programme in water company history to crack down on sewage spills and end pollution."

It says water companies will have to achieve targets, so discharges only happen when there is unusually heavy rain and when there is no immediate adverse impact to the local environment.

It has been argued a complete ban on discharging into the sea would be impossible to enforce, due to the pressure on our aging sewage system.

  • By 2035, water companies will have to improve all storm overflows discharging into, or near, every designated bathing water site; and improve 75 per cent of overflows discharging to high priority nature sites.
  • By 2050, Defra says the targets will apply to all remaining storm overflows, regardless of location.

It also says: "The plan sets out our wider expectations for the water industry, to ensure their infrastructure keeps pace with increasing external pressures, such as urban growth and climate change, to ensure our water supplies remain clean and secure for the future."

Critics have accused today's announcement of being an example of 'green washing'.

Who will pay for improvements?

Under the Defra plan, there will be no changes to water bills until 2025.

The Government says it has ruled out options that could add up to £817 a year to average household water bills.

A consultation will start on a new water affordability scheme for less well-off households.

A raft of measures have also been brought forward in our Environment Act to tackle sewage discharges, including the requirement for greater transparency from water companies on their storm overflow data.

The government is also supporting proposals by watchdog, Ofwat, for extra powers to take action against companies that don’t link shareholders' dividend payments to environmental performance, or those who fail to be transparent about their dividend pay-outs.