Pollution Watch UK Launches Website & App to Combat Water Pollution
A quick and easy way for anyone to report pollution incidents on the UK’s waterways
Shrewsbury, UK: Pollution Watch UK has launched a new website and mobile app to create a central hub for reporting, reviewing, and resolving water pollution incidents across the United Kingdom.
The free platform allows anyone to report pollution events quickly and easily, including sewage spills, industrial contamination, agricultural runoff, illegal dumping, and more.
With over 75% of rivers in the UK currently deemed unsafe for swimming and entire ecosystems facing collapse, Pollution Watch UK aims to raise awareness and hold polluters to account. The aim is to give everyone affected by water pollution a tool that provides a visual representation of the extent of the problem to drive change.
The Platform
The crowdsourced data compiled on Pollution Watch UK creates a visual heatmap of water pollution incident locations across the UK. This gives environmental groups, researchers, policymakers, and the general public unprecedented insight into the current state of the nation's waters.
Crowdsourced data, open transparency, and collective action aim to reduce pollution and help clean up the nation's rivers, streams, lakes, and waterways.
But Pollution Watch UK doesn't stop there - it serves as an open forum for water companies, environmental agencies, advocacy groups and others to respond to and update pollution reports publicly.
Radical transparency creates accountability for those responsible for acknowledging issues, acting, and reporting on remediation efforts.
So What?
According to Surfers Against Sewage, a staggering 584,001 raw sewage discharges entered UK waterways in 2023, 75% of rivers now pose a serious risk to human health, and more people are reporting sickness after bathing.
The big culprits - sewage overflows and wastewater discharges - cause 36% of inland water bodies in England to fail environmental targets, and just 14% of England's rivers are considered to have good ecological health.
Dwindling water quality has devastated wildlife, with sharp declines in insects, invertebrates, and migratory fish runs observed.
Now is the time to clean up our waterways and hold polluters accountable before further irreversible damage is done—and Pollution Watch UK provides a way to do just that.
"As someone who has been in and around rivers in all corners of the UK for over 40 years, I have witnessed firsthand the sad and rapid decline of our water quality and its devastating impact," said Russ Dilks, co-founder of Pollution Watch UK.
"Fishing in rivers that once ran clean and are now clearly polluted, seeing the huge decline in aquatic insects and invertebrates, witnessing runs of our precious migratory fish species drop off a cliff… it’s all very sad. We aim to provide an online tool that will go some way to reducing this decline with the ultimate goal of standing on pristine, clean waterways surrounded by wildlife. We can do this together!"
Get Involved
Anyone can submit a new pollution report in seconds using the website pollutionwatch.org.uk or the Pollution Watch UK app (available for iOS and Android).
The app automatically detects your location, allowing you to snap photos quickly, add details about what you're witnessing, and hit submit—putting another data point on the pollution map.
In addition to the general public, Pollution Watch UK is calling on stakeholder organisations, river authorities, angling clubs, conservation groups, and those with a vested interest in protecting UK waters to join the collective movement.
Partner groups receive enhanced accounts to closely monitor and update incidents, and leverage their involvement to demonstrate their commitment to cleaner rivers.
Find Out More
To start reporting pollution today, visit pollutionwatch.org.uk or search "Pollution Watch UK" in the iOS App Store or Google Play Store.
- https://pollutionwatch.org.uk/
- https://apps.apple.com/us/app/pollution-watch-uk/id6477917421
- https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=uk.org.pollutionwatch&pli=1
Sewage facts and figures: SAS, https://www.sas.org.uk/water-quality/water-quality-facts-and-figures/
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