WATER FURY: Emsworth Protest Planned After Child Hospitalised Following Polluted Sea Exposure

EMSWORTH is bracing for a furious waterside protest after campaigners said a child was hospitalised following exposure to polluted seawater.

The protest is planned for Saturday 16 May at Emsworth Mill Pond, with swimmers, paddlers, surfers and local families invited to join a paddle-out against sewage pollution in Solent waters.

Surfers Against Sewage, the Final Straw Foundation and other campaigners are expected to take part.

For families around Emsworth, Hayling Island and the wider Chichester Harbour coastline, this is not a distant environmental row. It is about whether parents can let children into the sea without fear.

## A FAMILY DAY THAT STOPPED FEELING SAFE

The alarm was raised in Portsmouth News reporting this week after environmental campaigners said a child had been rushed to hospital after spending time in the sea.

Emsworth mum Becky Corkery described the impact on her family in stark terms.

She said: "My son Charlie became seriously ill after exposure to polluted seawater, and it led to him being hospitalised. Since then, something as simple as a family day at West Wittering Beach is no longer carefree."

She added: "I find myself questioning whether it's safe to let my child into the sea at all and the most worrying part is how many families still don't know the risk they're taking."

Those words cut through the usual arguments about infrastructure, regulation and water-company performance.

Because behind every discharge map and monitoring chart is a basic local question: can families trust the water?

## THE MILL POND PROTEST

The demonstration is due to take place at Emsworth Mill Pond on Saturday 16 May.

Campaigners are expected to carry placards and paddle out into the water as part of a national wave of action over sewage pollution.

Emsworth is an obvious flashpoint. The village sits beside Chichester Harbour, where the water is not just scenery. It is part of daily life — sailing, rowing, paddleboarding, dog walks, crabbing, birdwatching and childhood summers on the shore.

When that water becomes a source of anxiety, the whole character of the place changes.

Bianca Carr, CEO of the Final Straw Foundation, said the group was joining the national protest because "the status quo is simply unacceptable".

She said: "Our daily testing in Emsworth has shown firsthand the impact of untreated sewage on our local environment. While water companies pay out huge dividends and bonuses, our ecosystems are being decimated, and our community's health is being put at risk."

She added: "We are paddling out to show regulators and the government that we will not back down until we see real legislative change and an end to sewage pollution for good."

## THE LOCAL ANGER

This issue has been simmering around the harbour for years.

Emsworth Slipper Sailing Club's environmental report, last updated in March 2026, says Project Spotlight testing looked at water samples and marine life across Chichester and Langstone harbours.

The club report says pharmaceuticals, recreational drugs and pesticides were found in water samples, and that levels after storm discharges were often 100 to 1,000 times higher than base levels depending on the chemical.

It also says E. coli levels following an untreated sewage discharge were found to be 760 times the safe bathing limit in Langstone Harbour and 1,800 times the safe limit at Thornham.

That is why this story lands so hard locally.

People in Emsworth do not need a lecture about the value of the harbour. They live beside it. They sail on it. Their children learn around it. Their businesses depend on the beauty and reputation of the waterfront.

A sewage row here is not abstract politics. It is personal.

## SOUTHERN WATER'S RESPONSE

Southern Water has said protecting public health and the environment is a priority.

A spokesperson told Portsmouth News: "Protecting public health and the environment is a priority for Southern Water and, while bathing water quality can be impacted by a number of factors, we're committed to improving the health of our local waters."

The company added: "As part of our five-year transformation plan we're investing £8.5bn to reduce storm overflows, strengthen infrastructure, and improve monitoring and transparency. We also provide near real-time information on storm overflow activity through our public reporting tools, so people can make informed decisions."

The spokesperson said Southern Water takes residents' and campaigners' concerns seriously and would continue to engage with communities while delivering environmental improvements.

The company also says pollution incidents have dropped by 30 per cent since 2023, and that dividends have not been paid since 2017 and will not be paid until at least 2030.

But residents facing higher bills are unlikely to be soothed by corporate timetables alone.

Portsmouth News reported that some households in the Solent region are seeing annual Southern Water bills rise by 47 per cent, with the company saying the increase will help fund infrastructure and environmental work.

For campaigners, the obvious retort is brutal: if bills are going up, the water had better get cleaner.

## WORK IS PROMISED AROUND CHICHESTER HARBOUR

Southern Water has already announced a scheme aimed at reducing storm overflows into Chichester Harbour.

Its Clean Rivers and Seas Task Force is carrying out surveys of the wastewater network in the Emsworth, Southbourne, Nutbourne and Chidham areas.

The company says those investigations will help decide what is needed to reduce overflows from Thornham Wastewater Treatment Works into Chichester Harbour, which happen when sewers and the site are overloaded with surface water and groundwater.

Possible solutions include relining or replacing sewer pipes so groundwater cannot get in, along with sustainable drainage schemes such as rain gardens, water butts and swales to slow surface water.

Jon Yates, Southern Water's head of delivery for the Clean Rivers and Seas Task Force, said when the scheme was announced: "We're delighted to start work on reducing storm overflows in this much-loved area of the Hampshire and Sussex coastline."

He said teams would be visible on the ground in Emsworth and villages along the A259 while they investigate the network and identify improvements.

That work matters. But for those planning to protest, promises of future improvements do not answer the immediate fear of a child becoming seriously ill after sea exposure.

## WHY IT MATTERS FOR HAVANT BOROUGH

This is an Emsworth story, but it belongs to the whole borough.

Havant's identity is tied to the coast: Langstone Harbour, Hayling Island beaches, Emsworth's mill pond and quayside, sailing clubs, nature reserves and waterside pubs.

When confidence in local water collapses, the damage spreads. Parents hesitate. Visitors think twice. Clubs worry about safety. Small businesses lose the sparkle that brings people to the waterfront.

The Environment Agency has rated bathing water at West Wittering as excellent in recent years, and Southern Water is right that water quality can be affected by several factors.

But the emotional reality is simple: one hospital scare is enough to make a parent afraid.

## THE VERDICT

The May 16 paddle-out is likely to be noisy, angry and highly visible.

That is the point.

Campaigners want regulators, ministers and water companies to see that harbour communities are no longer prepared to shrug off sewage pollution as the price of heavy rain and old pipes.

Southern Water says it is investing billions and improving transparency. Campaigners say families and wildlife are still paying the price.

In Emsworth, the dispute has now moved beyond spreadsheets and into the deepest fear of any parent: what if the water that looks beautiful is not safe?

Until that question is answered with confidence, the anger around the harbour will keep rising.

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*Sources: Portsmouth News report by David George, 28 April 2026; Southern Water statement quoted in Portsmouth News; Southern Water Clean Rivers and Seas Task Force update on Chichester Harbour storm overflow reduction scheme; Southern Water storm overflow and Rivers and Seas Watch public information; Emsworth Slipper Sailing Club Environmental Report, last updated 30 March 2026.*