What is sewage fungus?
It is slimy, murky brown, smells bad, and fills river enthusiasts and anglers with gloom.
But it is probably useful to know that sewage fungus, so called because of its fungal-shaped mass of filaments, is not fungus at all, but is primarily made up of several species of bacteria, most commonly Sphaerotilus natans, Beggiatoa alba, Carchesium polypinum, and Flexibacter species. By the time you see its characteristic slimy, floating fronds, it will contain some fungi and algae, too, and it always spells bad news for the river in which it is spotted and for any unfortunate wildlife living there.
This is the best summary I could come up with:
By the time you see its characteristic slimy, floating fronds, it will contain some fungi and algae, too, and it always spells bad news for the river in which it is spotted and for any unfortunate wildlife living there.
Sewage discharges are a common source of this kind of pollution, but these microorganisms can also be carried into waterways from animal slurry and even from effluent from paper mills.
Last month, a Devon farmer was fined £6,000 for polluting a stream with slurry, with thick sewage fungus visible for more than a mile downstream, the Environment Agency reported.
It has taken hold in Lake Windermere and has been spotted on the picturesque River Wye, as well as on a public footpath in Surrey after sewage overflowed from a Thames Water treatment works.
Add to that increased pressure on the wastewater system from a growing population, underinvestment in outdated infrastructure, and stresses from climate breakdown, and it is clear that changes need to be made if rivers and the wildlife they support are to be restored to health.
“These efforts are crucial in safeguarding the integrity and safety of our rivers – fundamental elements of both ecosystems and human wellbeing,” she said when the report was published late last year.
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