Water protest: Campaigners say Cambridge bathing spot 'five times more polluted' than it should be
ITV News Anglia's Russell Hookey reports ahead of a major water protest in London, which will be attended by campaigners from across the East of England.
Campaigners fighting to clean up our rivers have revealed that water in one of their designated bathing spots is regularly five times more polluted than it should be.
Protesters from across the East are preparing to join the March for Clean Water in London, calling for radical improvements in the condition of the country's waterways.
Around 130 groups are expected to attend the march, including groups supporting fishing, nature, the environment and water sports.
Volunteer Anne Miller, from Cam Valley Forum, is one of those who will be taking to the streets, with her group behind a move to apply for bathing water designation for a stretch of the River Cam at Sheep's Green in Cambridge.
Ms Miller explained her group had applied for the designation because they knew the water quality was poor and wanted to see action to improve it.
"We are disappointed about how poor the water quality is but also we are pleased because that means there is action happening", Ms Miller said.
The campaigners said tests they carried out regularly show the water at Sheep's Green is five times more polluted than it should be.
Ms Miller said cleaning up one river was not enough and the whole regulatory system was at fault, however she is optimistic for the future, saying her group is getting a lot of support from the local water company.
Clara Todd's Water Sensitive Cambridge group is also going to the protest and said they wanted to raise awareness about the importance of water.
She said: "We're in a water scarce catchment and we need to fundamentally change the way we manage it here and see the connections between our rivers and ourselves.
"I think that we need to regulate better. There are some things that our government needs to be doing - we have an Environment Agency which over the last 14 years has been hollowed out and many of the things they would normally do they have not been able to do."
Meanwhile, in Southend a water summit was held on Friday which campaigners hope will start to make a difference.
Among those at the summit were the Environment Agency, Anglian Water, Southend's MPs David Burton-Sampson and Bayo Alaba, and water users.
Daniella Boon, from Waterwatch UK, said it was up to everyone to make a difference to the cleanliness of our waters and said: "There's a lot of negative narrative about the sewage spills which is quite right - they shouldn't be doing it - but it's not just the big, bad water companies there's other things at play.
"You and I are responsible, businesses are responsible - there's oils and fats that get put down the toilet, there's wet wipes - they shouldn't be anywhere near the sewage system."
Dr Robin Price, Anglian Water's director of quality and environment, was at the summit and said Anglian Water was investing £104m in the Southend area.
Dr Price said: "We recognise that society has rediscovered its connection with the environment. I feel optimistic that we can solve some of these problems together going forward."
He added that Anglian Water was committed to reducing the number sewage spills, which he described as "unacceptable".
Saturday's march in London has been partly organised by keen fly fisherman and water campaigner Feargal Sharkey, who has been an outspoken critic of the state of British rivers.
Marchers will wear blue and will call on everyone to join the fight against what they describe as the "rampant poisoning of Britain's waterways."
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