I spent much of last Thursday and Friday deeply engrossed in sewage. Not literally fortunately, but I held a series of zoom calls with officials from Southern Water and councillors following on from the ‘Sewage Summit’ I organised before Christmas. On Friday Lancing councillor Andy McGregor and I also visited the West Beach Estate again to see the ongoing work after the pre-Christmas leaks.
The good news is that Southern Water have been conducting a comprehensive survey of the pipe systems under West Beach and they are likely to be recommending a complete overhaul of the rising main drain. Capacity is not an issue as the drain is typically under a third full until the heavens open, but they have no control over the pipes which drain run-off water from roads and roofs into the main sewers. The pipework is still within its typical lifespan, but the metal pipes have likely been compromised from the outside by saltwater from the Widewater and that is not easy to identify from just putting cameras down inside the pipes. Any replacement for these pipes will probably be made of corrosion proof plastic.
Residents of the estate have already been offered a refund of last year’s sewage charges and we discussed other ways that Southern Water can help recompense. The most vulnerable parts of the networked have been reinforced to help prevent further bursts until the full work is undertaken. As this will involve a deal of disruption, I have offered to organise a meeting between Southern Water and residents when their full findings and plans are completed. I have published a fuller account of my meetings, including about the Ropetackle spills on my Facebook page and will update my next newsletter.
Three cheers to Southlands’ councillor Tania Edwards who has taken it on herself to organise an appeal to have defibrillators installed at key locations in her Shoreham ward. This follows on from the campaign by Joss Loader when she was Adur Chair to install a network of devices across the district. Southwick councillor and current Chairman Steve Chipp has worked with businesses to provide defibrillators in Southwick Square, the first of which will be unveiled later this month.
Tania will be at our farmer’s market street surgery in Shoreham this Saturday with more details and leaflets are being delivered across Southlands. In the meantime, you can also contribute through her Just Giving page under the campaign name ‘Caring Hearts.’ See you there.
