Wastewater-handling facilities in Britain violate European law and must be upgraded regardless of cost, the Court of Justice ruled

Courthouse News Service: (CN) - Wastewater-handling facilities in Britain violate European law and must be upgraded regardless of cost, the Court of Justice ruled Thursday.
Regulators from the European Commission first began investigating U.K. wastewater-collecting services in 2003 after receiving complaints about excessive storm water overflows in Whitburn, a coastal community near the North Sea. Authorities informed the commission that improvements to the pumping station would be completed by 2004.
In 2005, the commission informed the U.K. that London-area wastewater facilities dumped untreated storm water into the River Thames even in periods of moderate rainfall. Authorities there agreed there were problems with the system that handled domestic, industrial and storm discharges, and announced the launch of the Thames Tideway Strategic Study to assess the environmental impact of the discharges.

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