By Aileen Robertson

THE CONTINUING major discharge of raw sewage into the Firth of Forth was a “disaster waiting to happen,” furious residents said yesterday.

Engineers are still attempting to stem the flow of waste and officials are warning people to avoid contact with the water.

It is estimated that by yesterday morning as many as 100 million litres of sewage had been discharged after a pump failed on Friday at the Seafield wastewater treatment plant in Edinburgh.

A thousand litres of raw sewage every second have been pouring into the Forth because of the fault.

Fife beaches, however, are safe from contamination, according to the Scottish Environment Protection Agency.

Thames Water, which operates the plant on behalf of Scottish Water, said it had not shut the plant down as it deals with most of the Scottish capital’s waste—from about 800,000 people.

Rob Kirkwood, chairman of Leith Links Residents’ Association, told BBC Radio Scotland’s Sunday Live, “We’re extremely angry, but not surprised. We’ve been telling the Labour and Lib Dem government and Edinburgh Council that Seafield is a disaster waiting to happen.

“It (the sewage works) has an infrastructure that is basically third world technology.”

Edinburgh City Council’s environmental health officers are now advising anyone who uses waterfront recreational areas to stay away.

They should also wash their hands after each visit and refrain from picking up or eating any fish or shellfish from the area.

SEPA said yesterday there were no concerns about the quality of water off Fife’s shores.

However a number of Fife residents were anxious about the potential impact.

Forth river pilot Alastair Gibson, of Aberdour, who has guided ships up and down the Forth for 16 years, said it was unlikely pollution from the plant could make its way to the Fife coastline.

He said, “Seafield is really quite remote from here and is on quite an open part of the estuary. The chances of anything flowing up to the north shore are pretty slim. There would have to be a massive spill before it made its way here.”

Colin McPhail, chairman of Dalgety Bay and Hillend Community Council and also a member of Dalgety Bay Sailing Club, was more apprehensive about the incident.

He said, “It is very much a concern that pollution could come over here with the incoming tide.

“It’s a great concern because a lot of people use the beaches here.

“If you go along to Aberdour, the Silver Sands has a Blue Flag award and is used for bathing during the summer.

“There is also concern about the impact on sailing activities in the Forth. It’s an outrage. In this day and age this should not happen.”

When contacted yesterday, Fife Council said no warnings had been issued to the north of the water.

A spokeswoman said, “There is no concern about any effects on the Fife coastline at the moment but we will continue to liaise with SEPA as necessary.”

SEPA said emergency measures were being taken to minimise pollution.

A spokesman said, “SEPA is aware of the engineering problems at Seafield sewage works, which resulted in the discharge of sewage to the Firth of Forth.

“SEPA staff are liaising with Thames Water, the site’s operator, and are satisfied at the moment that the necessary steps are being taken to avoid and minimise pollution.

“At this stage it is too early to make any comment on the impact of the incident.

“However, screening is in place, which has reduced the amount of solid waste and material being discharged, and it is understood that there is currently no visual impact in the area.

“We will continue to monitor and review the situation as it develops.”

Helen Lennox, Scottish Water’s head of corporate affairs, said, “This was a catastrophic failure at a pumping station and we have been working around the clock to fix it.

“On investigation our engineers found the repair was a much larger operation than first anticipated and we have had to locate specialist pumps from other parts of the UK.

“We have been working alongside our environmental regulator SEPA and City of Edinburgh Council throughout this period.

“We would like to take this opportunity to apologise to our customers for any inconvenience.”