Good afternoon,

Sorry but I'm over due for an update, but just needed to confirm with the project team the conclusions of the reports. There has been a significant amount of data from 2021 to provide an evidence based conclusion to the WINEP Cullercoats project. 

Essentially the investigations are now complete as part of Phase 1 and 2 of the study that have found no evidence of NWG assets being a primary cause for the deterioration in bathing water quality. The investigations have indicated that contaminated groundwater is likely to be the primary cause of the bathing water failings.

Potential options have been considered, which include diverting the flow from North Tyneside Council’s, John Street culvert, into our NWG combined sewerage network. Connecting the flow from the culvert into our sewerage network may remove one source of contaminated flows entering the groundwater. However, this would not guarantee that all sources of contaminated flows entering the groundwater would be intercepted. This option is being progressed for delivery in 2022 by the project team.

Out-of-season sampling of the bathing water and of a number of the locations sampled as part of the WINEP study, will be continue with the EA this winter prior to the 2022 bathing water season starting later this year. This includes continued sampling of the two boreholes that were drilled in the public footpath above the beach in August 2021.

I'll keep you up dated as we move into 2022.

Graeme Ridley 

(NWG Project Manager)

Good morning,

An update this morning. We have been undertaking further sampling in Cullercoats, in and around the harbour to get further data for an extra one month i.e. one month after the EA Bathing Water Sampling season, which ended in September. We have also been sampling two window / boreholes that were drilled / installed in August 2021 in the footpath directly above the caves at the harbour. We have been sampling ground water from these two points since August 2021. The final day we have planned for NWG sampling is now 26th October 2021, when we will have an excellent suite of sampling data, which will be evaluated for inclusion in the WINEP Cullercoats final report.

To get the information fully evaluated together with all the other investigations we have undertaken this year, completion of the final report will now be in November 2021. 

I'll keep you updated, as always and very much appreciate any posts on our NWG Community Portal for this project.

Regards

Graeme Ridley

(NWG Project Manager) 

Good afternoon,

An update today just to let you know how the NWG WINEP Cullercoats project is progressing.

We continue to have our quarterly meetings in collaboration with the Cullercoats Bathing Water Quality Group (NWG/EA/North Tyneside Council), the most recent meeting on the 14 July 2021.

Phase 2 investigations are ongoing and the final report from Stantec, our Technical Consultants, is still planned for completion 30 September 2021. Investigations ongoing include:

• NWG weekly sampling, on every Tuesday, at ten locations in and around the beach. Key locations are pools at the three caves to the back of the beach, the "John Street" culvert location that can be accessed from a manhole adjacent to John Street & the Marden Quarry sea outfall at the flap valve to the north directly below to our Browns Point pumping station. Analysis of the sampling is for intestinal enterococci (IE) and E.coli (E). There has been a correlation in the results between the John Street culvert and the pool especially in front of the middle cave. But NWG sampling has corroborated very well with the statutory EA results (that is shared on their web site), with very low levels of bacteria so far this season. But this has been a trend historically in numerous previous years, which will be closely monitored in the second half of the bathing water season;
• Cores have been undertaken in the concrete wall at the back of the middle cave at the back of the beach and, further sampling has been attempted behind that concrete wall. There is a correlation to sampling results from this pool at the front of the middle cave to the results that we are seeing in the John Street culvert;
• Small scale sewer repairs have been undertaken at the rear of John Street;
• Further mis-connections surveys have been undertaken between the Marden Quarry sea outfall below our Browns Point pumping station, right back to Marden Quarry itself, including the surface water pipes that also link into that surface water system.

In the next few weeks we plan to do three "window samples" in the cliff top footpath directly behind the beach caves. These "window samples" are essentially vertical 50-100mm diameter drill holes, which will be done similar to borehole drilling equipment techniques. The equipment is relatively small, the footpath will not need to be closed when this is being done, but there will be width restrictions to the footpath for approximately 5 days. These small holes will go down to the sandstone bedrock (5 - 6 metres) below the surface of the footpath, where we know there is ground water perched above the bedrock in this location, from viewing historic boreholes in this area (available to be seen on the British Geological Survey - BGS website). Groundwater samples we will extract from these three "window samples" for analysis of any bacteria in the ground water. The sampling will continue every Tuesday in our sampling programme till mid September. From the three "window samples" analysis for bacteria, we will then get a better understanding if there essentially a pathway that has formed from the John Street culvert, or possibly other land side culverts, that is permeating to the caves at the beach.

The effect from bacteria emanating from the sea to Cullercoats beach has not yet been ruled out, but the sampling we have been undertaking to date around the beach and to the sea side rock pools behind each pier is indicating very low levels of bacteria, that again is correlating to the bacteria analysis at the EA sampling point, in the sea in between the piers at the beach. Nevertheless, from what I have previously mentioned, it will be in the second half of the bathing water season that the results from the NWG sampling (and EA bathing sampling) might reveal more definitive sampling results and conclusions we can draw on for the Stantec report in September.

I'll post another update in August when we have completed the three window samples & also have some analysis results of the ground water in those locations. Then we will have further EA results also that are always posted on their web site.

Graeme Ridley

(NWG Project Manager)

Good afternoon,

Just an update today with regards the planned EA bathing water season 2021 sampling starting on the 15th May, the Local Authority's responsibility on static signage and additional information to note.

The Environment Agency are responsible for providing notifications to the public when it is forecast that bathing water quality might be impacted, such as from diffuse sources linked to rainfall. These notifications are provided during the official bathing water season (15th May to 30th September) as part the EA’s Pollution Risk Forecasting system and sent every morning to the electronic sign that is in place at Cullercoats. Further information can be found here: https://environment.data.gov.uk/bwq/profiles/ and also here: https://environment.data.gov.uk/bwq/profiles/data-prf.html

The Local Authority are legally responsible for displaying the required information in static signage at each designated bathing water, including Cullercoats. Further details can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/bathing-water-information-and-signage-rules-for-local-councils

Northumbrian Water are responsible for making sure that wastewater assets near to the bathing water are maintained and operated so as to maintain bathing water quality at designated sites. Significant investment over the past 30 years has resulted in a huge improvement in bathing water quality with over £7m being invested between 2020 and 2025 to improve seawater quality further. Since 2012, NWL also provides an all-year-round Beach Aware service of real time storm overflow alerts. This information and the EA’s PRFs are used by Surfers Against Sewage in their Safer Seas Service app.

The Phase 2 WINEP Cullercoats investigations are well underway. This Thursday, 25 March 2021 we will be on the beach again having a further investigation of the caves.

Please add your own updates if you would care to do so, I will respond. The more information we have will only help and, enable my Project Team and the Cullercoats Bathing Water Quality Group build up the evidence to understand the reasons for the recent deterioration of bathing water at Cullercoats.

Graeme Ridley

(NWG Project Manager)

Dear Mr Laing,

Thank you for your update. The investigations now being undertaken are following a detailed review or “gap analysis” by our specialist consultants taking into account all the work that has taken place through the partnership group to date. Phase 1 of this project, which was completed as part of NWG WINEP Cullercoats study, was to identify what investigations are necessary to undertake in 2021 that build on the investigations previously done as well as exploring new areas of interest.

There are now four packages of investigative work that will be undertaken before Easter 2021: mapping of underground sewer and surface water pipes; CCTV of underground sewers and surface water pipes; manhole surveys at specific locations; cave investigations at the beachRegulatory delivery dates for Bathing Water Quality investigations were moved by the Environment Agency when the Covid-19 issues started for the UK in March 2020, from 30th September 2021 to September 2022, a twelve month extension. However, the NWG project team, who are still working within an over-arching collaborative partnership group (Cullercoats Bathing Water Quality Group), will endeavour to understand the reasons for the current recent status of Bathing Water quality in Cullercoats beach by the delivery date of September 2021.

I’ll post may more updates in the months ahead to keep you well informed.

Graeme Ridley

Good afternoon.

There will be sewer mapping work starting on Thursday, 18th February 2021 in the John Street & local area to John Street. Kwikflow will be undertaking this work on behalf of NWG. 

This will involve cctv work of the NWG sewers to check connectivity of the sewers to the "John Street culvert". This culvert is well known in this location and has been investigated many times in the past before with North Tyneside Council. The reason for the mapping work now is to further investigate in more detail and try to confirm if there is any connectivity between the sewers and the culvert. Also we will be doing sewer manhole surveys in the location also to the areas around John Street.

Also working with North Tyneside Council, we will be undertaking small diameter pilot drills through the vertical concrete plug that is in one of the caves at the back of the beach, so you will see some activity down on the beach in that location hopefully next week also. This work will be dependent on working on the receding and low tides, as at high tide the level does get as far as the caves. This work is to determine if there is any standing water behind the concrete plug and undertake cctv of the void of the cave behind the concrete plug. We believe this concrete plug was installed for safety reasons to the public, as this particular cave is allegedly a long cave that does go well back in land from the beach, according to what I've heard.

I'll keep you undated on any further investigations.

Graeme Ridley (NWG Project Manager)

Good morning,

I am pleased to inform you that Esh Stantec (NWG's technical consultant) have completed the Phase 1 report on the WINEP Cullercoats project. The aim of this first report was

1. To undertake a review of all the known surveys, repairs, investigations and studies undertaken to date in connection with the deterioration of Bathing Water quality and classification in recent years;
2. Identify any data gaps that may need investigating to further our understanding of the cause for the deterioration in bathing water quality;
3. Produce a summary report outlining the reviewed data and any recommendations for subsequent investigations to be undertaken during the second phase of investigation.

The Phase 1 report summary and "gap analysis" has identified the following five key areas as gaps of our knowledge:

1. We need to establish the source of all flows into the John Street underground culverted watercourse;
2. Connectivity surveys and dye tracing of the beachfront facilities undertaken to date, have confirmed satisfactory connections to NWG sewer network, however the integrity and condition of these assets is not fully known. Investigations will now be undertaken to ensure there are no significant defects to these assets;
3. The presence of other hidden culverts potentially discharging onto the beach infiltrating underground, that are not visible on the surface. There is anecdotal evidence that there is another two underground culverts local to Cullercoats bay;
4. Further investigations and analysis into the local geology is recommended, with a focus on the significance of the geology that might be providing a preferential flow pathway towards the bathing water;
5. The nature of Cullercoats bay is such that it is an enclosed beach with two piers, potentially having an impact on flows in and out of the bay area. The significance of this, as well as the potential impact on the natural sandbars present in the bay area, will be investigated further.

The above five areas in the Phase 1 report "gap analysis" will be investigated further as we move into 2021. Further data collection that may require trial pits, boreholes, pipe CCTV work will resume in and around the beach front areas. We continue to work with the Cullercoats Bathing Water Quality Group (NWG, Environment Agency or North Tyneside Council) to work together so we can this year understand more precisely the reason(s) and bacterial source(s) of why the bathing water quality has been deteriorating in recent years.

The Phase 1 report examined the last five years of data from NWG's two storm overflows located within close proximity to the bathing water at Cullercoats. This data is held within NWG's eSCADA telemetry system and was reviewed to assess the performance of the sewerage network to identify any discharges from storm overflows. The records indicate that there have been no discharge events at the storm overflows in recent years.

I will provide more updates for you as we move into 2021.

Graeme Ridley

(NWG Project Manager)