Locals concerned over 'delay in reporting' of sewage pipe burst near Kenfig nature reserve
Locals have complained about delays to fix a burst sewer pipe which has caused sewage to make its way into a river between Porthcawl and Port Talbot.
Some sewage made its way into the River Kenfig on Friday 4 August with residents and local swimmers raising concerns that they were not made sufficiently aware of the risks.
Natural Resources Wales said it responded to the incident and that any sewage lost from the burst has now been "contained".
Tom Chapman a local swimmer who regularly goes to Coney beach said: "The communication to swimmers is not good enough.
"It is still unclear whether the water has been tested – despite the lifeguards looking to put their safety flags back up", he said.
Many locals took to Facebook and expressed their concerns on the official page of Natural Resources Wales(NRW).On local commented, "I became aware of this on Friday afternoon via a local fisherman. I shared his message to my triathlon club, but could find nothing about any incident online."
Another local said: "This is truly shameful and I hope no one is seriously ill from your inaction in sharing this during peak holiday season."
A spokesperson from Natural Resources Wales said local authorities were not notified of the incident because the river flows into the sea at Margam Sands which is not a "designated bathing water".
It added:" Since Friday 4 August, we have been responding to a pollution incident impacting the River Kenfig near Kenfig, between Porthcawl and Port Talbot.
"A main sewer line had ruptured and some sewage was making its way across land into the river.
"Dŵr Cymru Welsh Water have isolated the effected pipe whilst they undertake the necessary repairs. The sewage lost from the burst has now been contained and there is no longer any discharge to the river.
"We notify local authorities where we consider a water quality incident risks impacting a designated bathing water. In this case, the River Kenfig flows into the sea at Margam Sands, which is not a designated bathing water.”
Dŵr Cymru Welsh Water said repairs will take until the end of the week to complete.
It stated: “We were made aware of a burst sewer in the marshland to the rear of Kenfig Industrial Estate on Friday the 4th of August.
"Due to difficult ground conditions, the repair will take until the end of the week to complete to ensure that we keep everyone safe.
"Whilst this is taking place we will continue to serve the area with regular tankering from the sewer network continuing.
"The spill unfortunately reached the Afon Cynffig and we have been in regular contact with Natural Resources Wales (NRW) since Friday who have been monitoring the situation.
"The heavy rain over the weekend increased flows in the river and any impact would have been very localised to the burst site. We have been sampling the river to understand any impact and we are sharing our data with NRW.”
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