Various groups are now seeking to get areas of rivers designated as Bathing Areas as the regulations used in coastal areas would then apply. This should effectively end release of sewage both in the areas and upstream of them other than in genuine emergencies. I think this is something that we as anglers should support: there's an idea in political science (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4QbUSjnhv6M) called 'log-rolling' https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Logrolling where people support campaigns by others either in return for reciprocal support for their own objectives or because they will also get benefit if the campaigners are successful. It's very unlikely that river bathers will interfere with our sport but by supporting them we stand to gain increases in water purity if successful.The scale of the pollution that regularly occurs is shrouded in secrecy. Water companies are allowed to monitor their own discharges and do not release real-time data on how often, and for how long, combined sewerage overflows release sewage into any particular river.
As one commentator notes
“It [Bathing Status Designation] is the only way that we can see to get the Environment Agency, the water industry and the government to start treating our waterways with respect … We are going backwards in terms of water quality. People have taken their eye off the ball and the water industry has exploited that.”
