Warnings of likely sewage discharge into Wealdstone Brook

 

Thanks to social media we know that there appears to be yet another sewage discharge into the Wealdstone Brook at Lindsay Drive in Kenton ward.

Thames Water on River Brent pollution at last night's Scrutiny Committee

 

 

Readers who have followed with concern Wembley Matters coverage of raw sewage in the Wealdstone Brook and concerns over the River Brent, and who have been frustrated by what many saw as Thames Water's tardy response may be interested in the Thames representative's response to a question from Cllr Georgiou last night. Adequate?

Volunteers needed to create pollinator garden on derelict site at Kenton Grange

 From Friends of Woodcock Park

 

This beautiful, south-facing walled area is part of the old Kenton Grange gardens to the north of the brook. It had become a magnet for anti-social behaviour, was fenced off and became overgrown. However, we still had issues with anti-social behaviour. We have worked with Brent Council and local volunteers to clear this land since spring 2022. We are now working on autumn plantings to produce year round flowers. We are focusing on pollinator plants for late autumn, winter and early spring, but are grateful for any nectar rich flowering plants and insect habitats. Bulbs, corms, tubers, dwarf fruiting trees, bushes and climbers are all very welcome.

 

Friends of Woodcock Park have worked with local schools and school children for many years and are developing a mosaic for the pollinator biodiversity garden with local children, as well as plantings and other fun activities. We are developing new paths and beds, habitats to support pollinators’ breeding, and have secured funding from a number of sources to help with some of this work. We won Gold in the London in Bloom Awards for Large Park each of the last two years, and have also achieved a Level 5 – Outstanding ‘It’s Your Neighbourhood’ Award from the Royal Horticultural Society and Britain In Bloom this year. 

 

If you are interested in donating to or volunteering on our project, please contact us on projects@friendsofwoodcockpark.uk

 

BREAKING: Call for multi-agency action on threat of severe flooding of the Wealdstone Brook in Kenton

 

The course of the Wealdstone Brook causing concern over flood risk

Following a series of  recent first hand observations of the Wealdstone Brook between Becmead Avenue in Harrow and the Falcon Way bridge in Brent, John Timms MBE – a local expert hydrologist with a wealth of knowledge and 35 years of experience on hydrology issues including the Wealdstone Brook - and John Poole, a local Kenton resident for 50 years whose garden also backs on to the Wealdstone Brook, have both concluded that they are very concerned about the potential impact of a severe storm event in the Kenton area of the Brent catchment.

 

The lack of Wealdstone Brook base and bank maintenance and observed obstructions in the brook have led us to conclude that there is the potential for a serious flooding event the next time there is a torrential downpour which can cause the brook to fill up rapidly, for the water in the brook to move at a speed approaching 2.5 metres per second and a discharge of 20 cubic metres per second, for the foul surface and foul sewer network to reach maximum capacity quickly and overflow creating a major flooding event in the area.

 

On the 16^th and 17^th of August 1977 1,200 homes and business were flooded to a depth of up to 1.5 metres in the Brent catchment. The factors that exacerbated the flooding then are still present 45 years later and John Poole personally witnessed the event in 1977.

 

We are issuing this joint statement because, although Thames Water is presently carrying out its legal duties in locating and dealing with sewage and surface water pollution of the Wealdstone Brook in Harrow and Brent, we do not believe that the agencies with responsibility for maintaining flood risks in the area, namely Harrow and Brent councils, Thames Water and the Environment Agency, are taking the necessary action to reduce the risks from potential flooding in the area.

 

We have photographic evidence of potential obstructions in the Wealdstone Brook which, during a severe storm event, may cause blockages of culverts along the open length of the brook, which is mainly in Brent, with consequential flooding of residential and public properties.

 

We call upon Brent and Harrow Councils, Thames Water and the Environment Agency to find ways of working together with local stakeholders to urgently find a resolution to these issues of the maintenance of the Wealdstone Brook in order to reduce the risks of flooding in the future. This should include recommendations to improve resilience to future flooding events as well as implementing locally the final recommendations in July 2022 of the Independent Review into the severe flooding in London on 12 July 2021 and 25 July 2021.

 

Key questions for Kenton councillors over Brent Council's action on polio virus

 

COPY OF EMAIL SENT TO THE 3 KENTON WARD COUNCILLORS – WEDNESDAY 17^TH AUGUST 2022 –

 

Wednesday 17^th August 2022.

 

Dear Kenton Ward Councillors,

 

Re: Cllr.Neil Nerva’s email to all Brent Councillors and the UKHSA Press Release

 

As I am sure you are aware I have been raising serious concerns about the presence of untreated raw human sewage seen floating in the Wealdstone Brook as it flows through the open access areas of Woodcock Park here in the Kenton Ward of Brent for some months now.

 

The latest press release from the UK Health Security Agency included in Cllr Neil Nerva’s email to all Brent Councillors dated Monday 10^th August 2022 includes reference to the detection of the polio virus in Brent waterways along with the detection of this virus in 7 other north London Boroughs connected in some way or the other with the Beckton Sewage Works in east London.

 

Councillors are being urged by Cllr Nerva and indeed the UK HSA along with health professionals in the areas concerned to promote the polio booster vaccination programme for children aged one to nine.

 

My questions to you as my Kenton Ward Councillors included in the email from Cllr.Nerva are;

 

1.    From which waterways in Brent were samples taken that indicated the presence of the polio virus?

2.    What measures are Brent Council putting in place to secure those waterways to help prevent access and reduce the potential for infection?

3.    Will samples of the water flowing in the Wealdstone Brook be included in the analysis being undertaken by the UKHSA and the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA)? And will these samples include both the water flowing in Brent as well as in Harrow?

4.    Given that in the UK HSA Press Release dated 10^th August there is the following statement; 

 

“ The level of poliovirus found and high genetic diversity among the PV2 isolates suggest that there is some level of virus transmission in these boroughs which may extend to adjacent areas. This suggests that transmission has gone beyond a close network of a few individuals.”

 

what immediate measures are Brent Council taking to monitor whether there is any indication of any individual in Brent showing potential signs of infection from the polio virus?

 

Our recent understanding and experiences from the Covid-19 virus pandemic would surely be enough to set alarm bells ringing amongst Brent Councillors and Brent Council Officers, that action in dealing with this polio virus outbreak has to be top priority for the health and safety of Brent residents.

 

Yours sincerely

 

John Poole,

(Kenton address supplied)

 

Further key questions for Brent Council after Brent named as one of the places polio virus found in waste water. Children 1-9 to be offered boosters.

 

Tweet released by Brtent Council at 10.45am Thursday morning

The BBC is reporting that children aged one to nine are to be offered polio boosters after the virus was found in 116 places in London's waste water since February. Brent is named as one of the places it was found. LINK

Campaigners drawing attention to the amount of raw human sewage flowing in the Wealdstone Brook had raised the public health danger with Brent Council and asked for the declaration of a public health emergency.  See John Poole's letter HERE.

On June 23rd 2022, John Poole write to Wembley Matters:

Yesterday – Wednesday 22^nd June 2022 – the area around Beckton Sewage Works in NE London has been declared a ‘Major Incident’ because the Polio virus has been detected in the local river water. LINK

Raw sewage in the Woodcock Park section of the Wealdstone Brook persisted through to May.

If it turns out that water samples were also taken from the Wealdstone Brook (and they should have been given the information now released from the Environment Agency as of yesterday) then Brent Council were negligent to say the least in not declaring the human sewage pollution of the Wealdstone Brook a ‘Major Incident’ as requested by me.

If there were no medical tests of the water for such viruses, then I would regard that a major dereliction of duty from Brent and Harrow Council and the local medical authorities, particularly since we had a zoom meeting with a health official in the Brent and Harrow area regarding just this issue. The water of the Brook was not only chemically toxic and dangerous to human health – it would also certainly contain some potentially very serious viruses and was therefore biologically toxic.

How dare they play games with our health let alone the health of children who continued to play in and around this river as it runs through Woodcock Park and no action was taken by the authorities to fence off this river in spite of repeated requests on health and safety grounds from the Friends of Woodcock Park.

I am angry, very angry – ignorance is no excuse for the failure to protect the health of residents of Kenton, particularly those that live close to the Wealdstone Brook.

Campaigners said that that the brook flowed close to a primary and a secondary school  as well as through Woodcock Park and that children playing could go into its waters to retrieve balls or  while playing.

Dr Melanie Smith, Brent Director of Public Health, said: 

The risk to the general public from polio is low and remains low if you're up-to-date with your vaccinations. The polio vaccine has been tried and tested over many years and is safe and effective. The NHS is offering all London children aged one to nine a booster, so do take the opportunity to ensure you keep your children protected.

Cllr Ketan Sheth, Chair of the Community and Wellbeing Scrutiny Committee said:

It’s a public health concern that the polio virus has been found in sewage. However, I’m pleased that the NHS has acted quickly and is offering children aged 1-9 an urgent booster vaccination to protect them from serious illness.

 

Responding to the update John Poole said:

 

This reply from Dr Melanie Smith is unacceptable. It is not a question of low risk but of no risk. And one of the ways to establish a no-risk approach is to seal off as best as possible access to waterways in Brent where these have been tested and evidence of the polio virus has been detected. 

 

The UK Health Security Agency declared a ‘Major Incident’ with regards to the detection of the polio virus in waterways in 6 London Boroughs associated with Beckton Sewage Works in East London. Under pressure and threats from me, the UKHSA has now named those 6 Boroughs and Brent has been added to the list. Brent is therefore now included in the ‘Major Incident’ which is ongoing according to an email to me from Scott at the Press Office of the UKHSA dated 19^th July 2022.  There are two vital issues here;

1.    Which agency carried out the testing of the river waters in Brent? Which waterways were found to contain the polio virus? And is this information publicly available? If not, then I will apply under the Freedom of Information Act for a set of the results.

2.    What action is Brent Council now taking, in view of the fact that Brent is now included in the UKHSA ‘Major Incident’, to publicise the dangers of the waterways in Brent ?

LETTER: ‘The pollution of the Wealdstone Brook with untreated human sewage is a clear and present danger.’

 Dear Editor,

‘A clear and present danger’ said President Biden recently with regards to the Climate Emergency,.

 

A clear and present danger says the various Brent Council documents and press releases with regards to the Climate Emergency.

 

So why is the presence of untreated human sewage in the Wealdstone Brook as it runs through Brent on its way to the River Brent and then onto the River Thames not declared Code Red for the local residents? Why was a ‘Major Incident’ not declared by Brent Council using its Formal Executive Powers?

 

The presence of untreated human sewage along with unknown toxic gases vaporising at low temperatures from the water surface would surely be regarded as a ‘clear and present danger’ to all but the ignorant.

 

As a retired Brent Secondary School teacher I will have a worksheet available for every Brent Councillor at the next full Brent Council meeting (absentees will be set it as homework).

 

Write out 100 times;

 

‘The pollution of the Wealdstone Brook with untreated human sewage is a clear and present danger.’

 

John Poole

Cross-party and non-party call for Brent Council to play its part in tackling Wealdstone Brook pollution

 'Nauseating' - Wealdstone Brook earlier this year

 

Wembley Matters has covered the long-running issue of sewage and other pollution of the Wealdstone Brook that runs through parts of Harrow and Brent. Environmental campaigners, local residents and local political parties, have joined together to put pressure on the Environment Agency and Thames Water to take action.

 

As a member of Brent Green Party I welcome this cross-party and non-party approach to an important local environmental issue that affects everyone regardless of party.

 

At Full Council on July 11th Kenton resident John Poole will be make a deputation about the matter and later a motion from the Conservative Group, which I hope will received support from across the council chamber, will ask Brent Council to do all in its power to ensure the brook is cleaned up by the relevant agencies,  rectify wrongly connected foul sewers and consider legal action.

 

This is the Conservative Group Motion

Pollution of the Wealdstone Brook

 

The Wealdstone Brook, which runs in open water, starts in Harrow, runs through Woodcock Park in Kenton and then into Wembley past all the new developments around the stadium before reaching the River Brent, has been heavily polluted with untreated human sewage and toxic chemicals for some considerable time.

 

The Wealdstone Brook has nothing living in it – it is effectively a dead river.  The toxic smells which have come from liquids evaporating at low temperatures from the Brook water are nauseating and residents who live close to the Brook or have been walking close to the Brook in Woodcock Park, have been feeling physically sick as a result of these noxious odours.

 

 

Thames Water, who have been investigating the sources of the pollution, have admitted liability for cleaning up the pollution.  They have agreed that the pollution of the Wealdstone Brook is one of the worst they have come across but as a result of the shared responsibility for the maintenance of the Brook as it passes through Brent, Brent Council and the Environment Agency must also share some of the responsibility.

 

As a result the residents living nearby have expressed their disgust at the state of the Brook and consider that Brent Council should have declared this to be a ‘Major Incident’ once it had reports of untreated human sewage, toxic gases and smells vaporising from the water of the Wealdstone Brook.

 

This Council therefore resolves:

 

To do whatever is necessary and within the Council’s power to ensure that the water in Wealdstone Brook is cleaned up.

 

To do what the Council can to ensure that the agencies concerned take the necessary steps to detect and rectify all wrongly connected foul sewers which run into the Brook and to put them right at no cost to Council tax payers, in Brent.

 

To seek legal opinion as to whether legal action can be taken against the agencies that have responsibility for ensuring that the Wealdstone Brook is free of pollution if there is no immediate rectification of the problem.

 

 

To ensure in light of a serious risk to public health and as a matter of urgency the necessary actions are taken as soon as possible to put the foregoing into practice. 

 

Councillor Michael Maurice

 

Kenton Ward

Latest updates from Thames Water on Wealdstone Brook pollution

 

LETTER: Beckton Polio alert exposes Brent Council's lack of action on Wealdstone Brook sewage pollution

 Wealdstone Brook at the height of the pollution incident

Dear Editor,

 

Yesterday – Wednesday 22^nd June 2022 – the area around Beckton Sewage Works in NE London has been declared a ‘Major Incident’ because the Polio virus has been detected in the local river water. LINK

 

Raw sewage in the Woodcock Park section of the Wealdstone Brook persisted through to May.

 

If it turns out that water samples were also taken from the Wealdstone Brook (and they should have been given the information now released from the Environment Agency as of yesterday) then Brent Council were negligent to say the least in not declaring the human sewage pollution of the Wealdstone Brook a ‘Major Incident’ as requested by me. 

 

If there were no medical tests of the water for such viruses, then I would regard that a major dereliction of duty from Brent and Harrow Council and the local medical authorities, particularly since we had a zoom meeting with a health official in the Brent and Harrow area regarding just this issue. The water of the Brook was not only chemically toxic and dangerous to human health – it would also certainly contain some potentially very serious viruses and was therefore biologically toxic.

 

How dare they play games with our health let alone the health of children who continued to play in and around this river as it runs through Woodcock Park and no action was taken by the authorities to fence off this river in spite of repeated requests on health and safety grounds from the Friends of Woodcock Park.

 

I am angry, very angry – ignorance is no excuse for the failure to protect the health of residents of Kenton, particularly those that live close to the Wealdstone Brook.

 

John Poole, co-founder of Brook Way Community Diversity Project CIC and member of North West London Rivers Alliance

Update on Thame Water's clean-up of the Wealdstone Brook

From Thames Water 

Wealdstone Brook Pollution Update

Date: 27 May 2022 Watercourse clean

• Discharge of the fatty/oil waste from the Becmead Outfall has indicatively been reducing over the past week. Booms have been placed in the culvert upstream to limit ingress into the Brook. Routine pump-outs of the booms will be undertaken to prevent build-up. Please advise if any build up bypasses the booms and Thames Water Operations will pump-out.

• A programme for routine flushing has now been finalised and is planned to start on 27 May. Currently this is planned once per week at two locations in the Brook with the aim to scale up/down based on weather conditions.

  Investigations to find the source of the Pollution:

• The discharge of the fatty/oil waste from the Becmead Outfall is indicatively reducing. Mitigation is in place to prevent further ingress into Brook.

• The Investigation crew is completing checks of the culvert, foul and surface network near Kenton Lane to establish if there are any other significant sources of pollution contributing to the issue, specifically sewage.

• A 24 hr telemetry sonde has been installed downstream of the Becmead Outfall as part of the investigation to confirm the source the fatty/oily waste.

  Next steps

• Thames Water Operations to continue monitor the discharge at Becmead closely over the next week to confirm any reduction in fat discharges. Booms and sandbags now placed in the culvert to minimise further discharge.

• Pump-out of the booms when necessary to minimise odour

• Further flushing and cleaning of the brook is planned to minimise the odour.

  .

  Next update: Latest Tuesday 31 May

  .

Thames Water updates on Wealdstone Brook pollution

Thames Water have suppied Wembley Matters with the folloing updates on the polution of Wealdstone Brook

Wealdstone Brook Pollution Update

Date: 13 May 2022 Watercourse clean

·       Daily pump outs at key locations have been undertaken to minimise odour.

·       Rainfall on 11 May appears to have provided a flush of the surface water system

·       The clean-up team will be onsite across the weekend in expectation of warmer weather.

·       A programme for routine flushing frequency is being finalised with the contractor.

Investigations to find the source of the Pollution:

·       Following multiple CCTV and man sewer entries, several point sources of fatty/oil waste have been identified in the Forward Drive/Cullington Close area and we are undertaking the formal gathering of evidence to establish if these are linked to the current pollution to the Wealdstone Brook.

·       From next week we will be beginning investigations into a different catchment area (Greenhill/Harrow) that feeds the Becmead Road outfall to continue the investigation.

Next steps

·       Thames Water Operations to begin investigations in Harrow Greenhill catchment.

·       Identified sources of fat/oil waste to be addressed through Thames Water’s formal

investigation and enforcement processes.

·       Further flushing and cleaning of the brook is planned to minimise the odour.

Next update: Latest Tuesday 17 May

Date: 10 May 2022 Watercourse clean

·       A manual clean of the section from Becmead Avenue to Kenton Road was conducted across Friday 6 May – Sunday 8 May. The cleaning crew also extended the section past Kenton Road.

·       Periodic flushes of the brook by Thames Water tankers are being arranged to limit stagnation and reduce odour.

·       A further pump out of the brook by the Kenton Lane trash screens is being conducted on the afternoon of 10 May following an increase in odour reported.

Investigations to find the source of the Pollution:

·       Following tracing work last week, the investigation crew found evidence of two potential wastewater inputs suspected to be linked to this current pollution event within the proximity of the Forward Drive area of Wealdstone.

·       Additional Operational resources have been present onsite at this location 9 May and 10 May working to confirm if these sources are the cause.

·       One input is a misconnected commercial premises – details of this property have been passed to our commercial and trade enforcement teams to resolve as an urgent priority.

·       The second input found was evidence of a previous fat/foul discharge from an unmapped surface line directly into the culvert. The source of this discharge is yet to be established as it is originating from an unmapped line which slows the ability to trace the source.

Next steps

·       Thames Water Operations continuing to trace the unmapped line on 10 May for the source of the fat/foul waste discharge.

·       Further flushing and cleaning of the brook is planned to minimise the odour. Next update: Latest Friday 13 May