In pictures: Hastings residents join national day of action to protect coast from sewage

With the general election looming, the marine conservation charity is urging voters to put pressure on MPs and legislators to hold water companies to account, and pass laws which will crack down on sewage dumping along the coast.

The protest also comes as water companies all over the UK draft business plans which they will submit to industry regulator Ofwat; Surfers Against Sewage is hoping that the protests will prompt Ofwat officers to hold the companies to higher standards, making sewage releases more difficult and penalties for breaches even tougher.

A statement on the Surfers Against Sewage website makes the charity’s goal as unambiguous as possible: “Our ocean is under threat. Water companies are forcing our rivers and seas into a critical state by continuing to dump a toxic chemical cocktail of untreated sewage straight into waterways. And for far too long, regulators and Governments have let them get away with it. Not only are they destroying ecosystems, they are putting human health at risk. And we’re sick of it.”

Speaking to a Sussex World reporter, protest lead Jemima Gibbons said: “Enough is enough, there’s not enough action being taken and it needs to start now.”

Co-organiser Barny Green added: “It’s affecting residents, it’s affecting tourism, and it’s affecting nature and marine life, all of which is really important.”