Stop the Sewage

The map below - courtesy of Surfers Against Sewage - is alarming and far too common to see along our beautiful Isle of Wight coastline. And the east coast has the most alarming statistics.

Monitoring water quality is a critical part of having safe waters for people and wildlife to enjoy. But clean water should not be a luxury - and we should not have to check apps like this every day to ensure that we can have a swim!

Back in 2013 I swam across the Solent to raise money for West Wight Sports Centre and the Isle of Wight Foodbank. At the time I was excited by the freedom of getting in the water and challenging myself to do something new. I wasn’t involved in politics - I hadn’t ever been a member of a political party. It struck me as concerning that charities like the sports centre and the foodbank relied upon people like me to raise money for their vital work - but I was happy to do something to help.

I never even thought about whether the waters were clean and safe to swim in! We took so many things for granted a decade ago - and thanks to the successive failures of government and the demotion of the value they put upon the natural world we are now having to fight Southern Water and our politicians to ensure we get the basics right.

Incidentally - to swim across the Solent from Hurst Castle to Colwell Bay we had to pair up with a swimmer and a kayaker. My swimming partner was Abbie James, who is now a regional team leader for The Wave Project charity across the Isle of Wight, London and Brighton. Proud of you, Abbie! And our safety kayaker was Neil Oliver, who I’ve worked alongside with the Green Party and various housing, sustainability and cultural projects with since. I love how the Isle of Wight comes together - we don;t do 7 degrees of separation here!