Frome MP David Warburton has defended his decision not to back an amendment to force water companies to take all reasonable steps to avoid pumping raw sewage into rivers and the sea.

A vote on the Environment Bill saw scores of MPs, including the one from Frome and Somerton, reject a change that would include an "explicit' requirement to stop sewage getting into waterways.

It has been estimated that last year there were over 400,000 sewage outflows into waterways in England. These are when untreated sewage is discharged into waterways when the existing drains cannot cope, so when there is heavy rain for instance.

This should only happen in exceptional circumstances and environmentalists say that the storm overflows are being used as a routine way to disperse sewage.

Cllr Adam Boyden tackled David Warburton directly for not voting for the amendment but on social media the MP replied that to ban the practice completed would : "Mean the majority of all sewage systems in the entire country would have to be reinstalled. The estimated cost is up to £600 billion – more than all our pandemic measures put together."

The councillor responded: " David, thanks for your response on this. But I need to remind you that you pledged to the @theriverstrust

and @forfrome you would support the Sewage (Inland Waters) private members bill that included the legal duty which you now object to."

Details on the local campaign to protect the River Frome HERE : the Friends of the River Frome site

You can check out how many storm overflows can potentially be pumped into local rivers by clicking HERE

which maps all the watercourses

In England, just 14 per cent of rivers have been recorded as having "good" ecological status and none have good chemical status.

An analysis of Environment Agency figures by the Rivers Trust found 86 per cent of England's rivers are in 'failing health'. In more than half of these cases, the charity said this was due to water companies - partly because they were pumping raw or partially-treated sewage into rivers.

Twenty two Conservatives did rebel against the government last week over the vote, but not David Warburton.

The former Undertones singer Feargal Sharkey, who has been a driving force behind the campaign, has urged his fans on Twitter to keep putting pressure on their MPs.

The vote came seven weeks after wastewater plants were given permission by the government to dispose of sewage not fully treated because of a shortage of chemicals resulting from a lack of HGV drivers.

You can read the Frome Nub News report about the river and what has been pledged by clicking HERE : the Nub News site

The amendment is: 141A Duty on sewerage undertakers to take all reasonable steps to ensure untreated sewage is not discharged from storm overflows. (1) A sewerage undertaker must demonstrate improvements in the sewerage systems and progressive reductions in the harm caused by untreated sewage discharges. (2) The Secretary of State, the Director and the Environment Agency

must exercise their respective functions under this and any other

Act to secure compliance with this duty.