South West Water reassures public over Gannel Road repair works

Tuesday, 14 October 2025 12:39

South West Water says no untreated effluent will be released while it repairs a leak on the A392 Gannel Road in Newquay.

But the company says it will temporarily move some wastewater by tanker to be discharged at Towan Head, and make a short, controlled release of fully treated, UV-disinfected water into the River Gannel.

The Environment Agency is expected to issue a Pollution Incident Reporting Tool (PIRT) notification, a move South West Water described as “standard protocol” and made at the agency’s discretion.

The Gannel link road will stay closed during the repair work, with a diversion in place via Mount Wise and Trenance Road. Drivers are being warned to expect continued heavy traffic in the area.

Dave Swiggs, Director of Wastewater Services West at South West Water, said:

“We are carrying out planned work on Gannel Road in Newquay to repair a leak.

To do this safely, we’ll temporarily tanker some of the flows and discharge them at Towan Head as usual. We will also reroute a small proportion of the flows, with Environment Agency agreement, and make a short and controlled release of fully treated, UV-disinfected high-quality effluent into the River Gannel.

The Environment Agency has advised it will issue a PIRT notification, which is their decision and standard protocol.

We want to reassure the community that no untreated effluent will be released. We will continue to monitor water quality closely and apologise for the inconvenience while Gannel Road remains closed.”

Radio Newquay has contacted the Environment Agency for further information and comment.

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