Save Windermere campaigners have claimed victory in a legal battle to make sewage discharge data public.
United Utilities has backed down from a legal fight to withhold data on the discharge of treated sewage into Windermere.
It comes after water campaigners faced dozens of rejected requests to access data from phosphorus – found in sewage discharge – monitors and from Cunsey Beck, where a pollution incident caused by an unknown source resulted in the death of over 200 fish.
The water firm claimed the requests were manifestly unreasonable, that the data did not qualify as environmental information, that requests were too broad, data sets were incomplete and that its release would perturb the course of justice.
While the Information Commissioner’s Office ruled last year that the information being withheld should be disclosed – United Utilities appealed the decision.
It’s appeal was expected to be heard early this year, but the water company has now withdrawn its appeals.
The Save Windermere campaign group said since United Utilities withdrew its appeal, it has communicated readily with them.
As well as releasing the appeal information, it also provided a significant amount of additional data the campaign had previously requested.
Matt Staniek, who founded Save Windermere, said while the campaign was encouraged by the outcome, it could not ignore the years of persistent campaigning it took to achieve it.
During this time, United Utilities also became the first water company in the UK to receive a special enforcement measure from the Information Commissioner’s Office due to it’s failure to comply with data transparency laws.
A United Utilities spokesman said: “In our commitment to being more transparent, we are making information even more accessible.
“We welcome clarifications made by the Information Commissioner’s Office and will continue to engage with its processes to ensure what is disclosed falls under the scope of EIR.
“In Windermere we have, so far, invested £75 million upgrading our treatment works and pumping stations.
“We are now delivering at pace a further £200 million of investment in the catchment as we make further improvements to ensure we treat wastewater to even higher standards alongside significantly reducing discharges from the six storm overflows that discharge into the lake.”
