Jim Hunt

South West Water's "WaterFit Live" map showing recent combined sewer overflow activations affecting the bathing beaches of Devon and Cornwall on February 26th 2026

South West Water's "WaterFit Live" map showing the most recent combined sewer overflow activation at the Maer Road pumping station in Exmouth on February 26th 2026

West Devon Free Press combined sewer overflow database entries on February 26th 2026, showing a list of the most recent combined sewer overflow activations at the Maer Road pumping station in Exmouth.

Speaking of sewage pollution in Exmouth, and elsewhere in South West England 👇

west-devon.info/2026/02/febr...

Our #WestDevonCSO database reveals the truth that South West Water's #WaterFitLive map hides:

Earth's heat to produce electricity for homes in UK clean energy first Water super-heated by rocks will also provide the UK's first domestic supply of the critical mineral lithium.

At long last deep geothermal energy is powering the electricity grid in Cornwall:

www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

"The water, super-heated by rocks, will help drive turbines to generate electricity for 10,000 homes, but will also provide the UK's first domestic supply of lithium"

1/

UK Met Office yellow warning for heavy rain across South West England from 6 AM on February 18th to 8 AM on February 19th

Unlikely as it may seem, the United Kingdom's @metoffice.gov.uk has issued yet another weather warning for 🚨heavy rain🚨 across #Devon and #Cornwall.

The latest in a long line of recent warnings starts at 6 AM tomorrow morning and continues overnight into Thursday.

#WestDevonWx

The number of active combined sewer overflows across Devon and Cornwall is gradually reducing:

west-devon.info/2026/02/febr...

However, the multi week #sewage "spills" affecting the "bathing beaches" at Woolacombe, Torcross, Plymouth and Coastguards beach on the Erme estuary continue.

1/

South West Water's "WaterFit Live" map of recent combined sewer overflow activations affecting the bathing beaches of Devon and Cornwall, recorded at 9 PM GMT on February 15th 2026

Water UK's map of active combined sewer overflows across Devon and Cornwall, recorded at 9 PM GMT on February 15th 2026

If you are resident in Devon or Cornwall you may have noticed that we've had a lot of rain recently?

Which has some unfortunate side effects.

Here are today's updates on coastal and inland #SewagePollution from South West Water and Water UK respectively:

west-devon.info/2026/02/febr...

1/

FYI @tom--scott.bsky.social @greenpartymolly.bsky.social @docrichard46.bsky.social @westcountryvoices.bsky.social @westenglandbylines.co.uk @theprsd.bsky.social @georgemonbiot.bsky.social @skentelbery.bsky.social @adamvaughan.bsky.social 👇

I had no idea that #SundayPixRed was a thing on here!

Going back even further into the mists of time, our first test drive of a shiny red Nissan LEAF was in 2015 👇

ERA5 data for January 2026 has still not made it over to @noaa.gov's "Web-based Reanalyses Intercomparison Tools".

Rather belatedly here is our @nsidc.bsky.social #Arctic sea ice news replacement service, reverting to the NCEP/NCAR R1 reanalysis:

greatwhitecon.info/2026/02/fact...

Moving pictures of the little bridge over the stream at Northcott Mouth, where I inadvertently blocked the path of a coast path runner who we'd passed earlier heading in the opposite direction.

Plus some pebbles!

4/

Another quick panorama, showing one section of the soggy South West Coast Path which is in imminent danger of plunging into the North Atlantic.

Cc: @kasiaturajczyk.bsky.social

3/

A quick panorama of a few people having fun with the aid of the incoming swell at Crooklets Beach in Bude, North Cornwall.

Good for kayakers perhaps, but not great for bodyboarders.

We went for a walk instead.

2/

Astonishingly yesterday afternoon's weather forecast did not include heavy rain!

We took the opportunity to take a trip to the seaside. As did lots of other people!

The morning sun had all but disappeared behind the clouds, and it was very wet underfoot on the coast path.

1/

Peering into the future In films1, the hero/genius issues commands to a disembodied computer voice which then effortlessly manufactures a pair of rocket boots. Donning the boots, the hero – without practice – …

Peering into the future:

"The rocket boots might well propel our protagonist majestically skywards, but they might also hurtle him into the side of a mountain at the speed of sound."

diagrammonkey.wordpress.com/2026/02/14/p...

A bonus picture of the almost forgotten sun, shining behind a leafless tree.

2/2

It's been a long time since a sunny day was forecast, and we had a clear view of Dartmoor under a blue sky.

#WestDevonWx

1/2

I don’t really know what I expect in posting this, but maybe some people see it and can learn from it.

I’ll call it “lessons from an unwilling immigration attorney.”

1/

Thanks for the info Dean!

We already cache some data in a MySQL database, so hopefully I won't need to bother you (much?!).

I'll take a good look at your GitHub when I have a spare 1/2 hour, which at the current rate may not be until the weekend.

South West Water's map of combined sewer overflow activations at Torcross in South Devon, recorded at 15:50 GMT on February 10th 2026

An extract from the West Devon Combined Sewer Overflow database for the Slapton sewage treatment works settled storm overflow on February 10th 2026

An extract from the West Devon Combined Sewer Overflow database for the Slapton storm overflow on February 10th 2026

"Even more concerning is the fact that the two CSO’s in Slapton have been overflowing continuously, if intermittently, into Slapton Ley for many days.

It is a Site of Special Scientific Interest and was declared a National Nature Reserve in 1993"

west-devon.info/2026/02/febr...

2/n

#WestDevonCSO

South West Water's map of combined sewer overflow activations at Torcross in South Devon, recorded at 15:45 GMT on February 10th 2026

Having virtually signed @carolinevoadenmp.bsky.social's Slapton Sands petition I decided to take a closer look at #sewage pollution along that stretch of the south coast of Devon. Here is what I discovered👇

"The Torcross CSO has been continuously overflowing into Start Bay since January 20th."

1/n

Thanks GG!

This would appear to be it:

gdt.grampound.workers.dev

I assume you mean a smartphone app? Can you send me a link to the one you're referring to?

We're working on something similar, but the user interface currently leaves a lot to be desired!

Our records reveal this CSO in Grampound has been on the go continuously since January 24th, and SWW agree:

South West Water's "WaterFit Live" map showing a brief combined sewer overflow activation at Portreath on the North coast of Cornwall on February 9th 2026

An extract from the West Devon Free Press's database of combined sewer overflow activations at Portreath during February 2026. Part 1 of 2

An extract from the West Devon Free Press's database of combined sewer overflow activations at Portreath during February 2026. Part 2 of 2

Further west still, the Bridge pumping station overflow at Portreath is active yet again.

Although it's impossible to know this from SWW's #WaterFitLive web page, our #WestDevonCSO database reveals that it has actually been in operation for much of this year👇

Cc: @perranmoonmp.bsky.social

4/n

South West Water's "WaterFit Live" map showing a multi-day combined sewer overflow activation at Woolacombe in North Devon on February 9th 2026

South West Water's "WaterFit Live" map showing a multi-day combined sewer overflow activation at Watergate Bay in North Cornwall on February 9th 2026

In more #ShockNews from the #NorthShore of SW England, the (in)famous "poo pipe" at Woolacombe has been in continuous operation since January 26th.

Further west, the combined sewer overflow at Watergate Bay has been active since February 2nd

Cc: @ianroome.bsky.social @robtibbles.bsky.social

3/n

South West Water's "WaterFit Live" map of active combined sewer overflows at Fistral beach in Newquay on February 9th 2026

South West Water's "WaterFit Live" map showing an active combined sewer overflow at Trevaunance Cove near St. Agnes on February 9th 2026

South West Water's map showing active combined sewer overflows at Halwill and Shebbear sewage treatment works (amongst others!) on February 9th 2026

Hence the #surfing beaches at Fistral in Newquay and Trevaunance Cove at St. Agnes are suffering from #sewage pollution yet again:

west-devon.info/2026/02/febr...

Also the CSOs at Halwill and Shebbear near us are discharging into the Rivers Carey & Torridge.

Cc: @geoffrey-cox-mp.bsky.social

2/n

South West Water's "WaterFit Live" map of recent combined sewer overflow activations affecting the bathing beaches of Devon and Cornwall, recorded at 10 AM GMT on February 9th 2026

Water UK's map of active combined sewer overflows across Devon and Cornwall, recorded at 10 AM GMT on February 9th 2026

@netweather.tv's rain radar map for Devon and Cornwall, recorded at 4 PM GMT on February 9th 2026

Here are the South West Water and Water UK maps of active combined sewer overflows across Devon and Cornwall at 10 AM this morning👇

As if they aren't bad enough, by this afternoon the forecast heavy rain has arrived.

Cc: @skentelbery.bsky.social @grumpygirdle.bsky.social @carvemag.bsky.social

1/n

January storms boost Devon and Cornwall reservoir levels Persistent January rainfall means reservoir levels are

A quote from me on the BBC 👇

"Water campaigner Jim Hunt... said it sounded like
South West Water was 'kicking the can down the road, crossing their fingers that we don't have a dry spring and summer. They have dodged a bullet the past two summers'"

www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

#Drought2026

1/n

UK Met Office weather warning for heavy rain across South West England on the 2nd and 3rd of February 2026

Here's my own recent article on the the topic, hot off the "West Devon Free Press" 👇

west-devon.info/2026/01/wint...

"The weather gods are smiling on us once again! The Met Office has issued a weather warning for heavy rain for Monday afternoon and overnight into Tuesday morning"

5/n

"It's fair to say given the changes around climate change and the extremes associated with that we can't work on the basis on the events we've seen in 2022 and 2025 are abnormal.

Even though you're getting circumstances of reservoirs filling quite well, we can't rely it on it being enough."

4/n

The Beeb also quote Alastair Chisholm, the director of policy at the Chartered Institution of Water and Environmental Management:

"The risk is still there. We've seen some pretty tight situations come mid-summer because of a very, very dry spring and a early summer" he said.

3/n

South West Water graph of the total net water storage of their reservoir network on January 25th 2026, also including data for 2025 and the "drought year" of 2022

South West Water graph of the total net water storage of Colliford Lake in Cornwall network on January 25th 2026, also including data for 2025 and the "drought year" of 2022

The BBC article also mentions that I:

"Noted Colliford - the largest of South West Water's reservoirs in Cornwall - 'still has a long way to go to get to 100%' and 'no-one can be sure' of the level of rainfall for the rest of the year."

Here's a couple of graphs that illustrate that point 👇

2/n