Nine million litres of raw sewage spilled into Fife's River Eden in 2022, Scottish Water figures show

Overflow data from Scottish Water revealed that more than nine million litres of raw sewage spilled into Fife’s River Eden, Forth Estuary and the North Sea in 2022.

The data was obtained by councillor James Calder (Lib-Dem).

As a result of the figures, he has put forward a motion to next week’s Fife Council meeting to push for action.

He said: “Fife has an amazing coastline and rivers which are being polluted through sewage overspills. I’m concerned that this is the tip of the iceberg and that there are many other incidents that are not recorded.”

Councillor Calder’s motion will ask members to write to Scottish Water to ask them to explain these overflow events as well as what efforts are being taken to mitigate their impact and prevent a repeat in the future.

“We need action on this. I’m pushing for the council leader to raise this with Scottish Water,” he said.

“The current situation is unacceptable and I am demanding action to tackle this sewage menace.”

The data from Scottish Water indicates three main areas of concern in Fife.

Raw sewage spills were recorded in Cupar’s Haugh Park, Ironmill Bay near Charlestown and Crombie; and St Andrews Bruce Embankment as well as St Andrews Harbour.

Storm events at Ironmill Bay were responsible for the biggest spills in 2022 – more than 7.8 million litres of sewage was reportedly spilled into the Forth Estuary.

Fife Council will discuss Mr Calder’s motion on Thursday.