Defra forms taskforce to reduce sewage discharge into rivers and seas

Critics say permits allowing release of waste after extreme weather are a licence to pollute

Urgent new measures are being taken to address the scale of untreated sewage leaks into rivers and seas as pressure grows on the water industry and government to act.

The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs has set up a taskforce to cut the frequency of sewage discharges into rivers and seas from storm overflows, following revelations in the Guardian that water companies released raw sewage into rivers more than 200,000 times last year.