St Agnes sea swimmers to make stand against South West Water
They're dedicating their carnival float in protest against sewage discharges in our rivers and seas
A sea swimming group in St Agnes are making a stand against worsening sewage discharges, in the annual village carnival.
The brave group of swimmers who form 'Mor Kernow Dippers' wake up before work to go for an early morning swim in the sea daily, without wetsuits, to boost physical and mental health.
Tony Green, sea swimmer from St Agnes, said:
"There's no way I'd be in the sea on a cold winters day if it wasn't for the group going down.
"It's such a supportive group and it's so much fun to have a chat when you swim out to the buoy. You get out at the end - particularly when it's freezing in the water - and you're absolutely buzzing. It's a rejuvenating experience."
Despite regularly going for dips, the group say often they can't go in at Trevaunance Cove due to sewage alerts.
"It's infuriating"
Vicky Round, swimmer from St Agnes, told us:
"If you're here on holiday and you don't know about the apps you have no idea that the sea has pollutants in it. Children and people are swimming but there's no signage or information."
Swimmers are calling for 'real-time' alerts about sewage, for example brown flags on beaches to alert holidaymakers and locals of discharges when they happen.
Vicky added: "We should be able to swim in the sea without fear of sewage release. It's infuriating that it's so frequent."
"We do need to stay safe"
Jackie Cotton, swimmer from St Agnes, said: "What we do is we all wait around 24 hours for safety. I hope we learn what exactly the levels they are testing for and a much more accurate, daily, update."
In response, a spokesperson from South West Water said: "We understand how important this issue is to our customers and communities and are focussing on bathing water and shell fish waters as a priority.
"We’re investing £760 million over the next five years to reduce the use of storm overflows and improve infrastructure across the region. We were one of only five water companies to reduce storm overflow spills in 2024. Over the last five years, we’ve cut beach spills in the bathing season by 20%, and we’ve already removed three-quarters of the top 20 highest spilling sites from 2023.
"There’s more to do, and we’re committed to delivering long-term change as we continue investing at record levels to reduce our use of storm overflows.
"We’ll continue working closely with communities to make the improvements needed now and in the future."
St Agnes Carnival will be hosted on Saturday 2 August.