AN URGENT upgrade is needed to Britain’s sewage system to prevent people from encountering human waste in rivers and seas,  engineers warned today.

The Royal Academy of Engineering also called for extensive testing on Britain’s waterways as the continuous discharge of treated wastewater into rivers, seas and lakes contains high levels of human faecal organisms.

Although intended for emergency use only, sewage discharged from overflows, which release untreated sewage into rivers and seas to prevent sewer back-ups, increased by 54 per cent last year, according to the Environment Agency.

One of the academy report’s contributors, Barbara Evans, professor of public health engineering at the University of Leeds, highlighted that “150 years ago, Britain committed to eliminating cholera and made the necessary huge investments in our wastewater system.”

She said: “That investment is reaching the end of its life, and we owe it to our children and our grandchildren to make a new commitment and create a vision of a new wastewater system fit for the future.”

The report comes after hundreds of people fell ill with diarrhoea, vomiting and stomach pains after South West Water failed to provide safe tap water in Brixham, Devon.

Surfers Against Sewage took to the waters to protest against illegal sewage discharges on Saturday, as sewage alerts warning of pollution continued to be issued around the country.

River Action chairman and founder Charles Watson said the report provides “a hugely authoritative new voice” in calling for action on Britain’s sewage crisis, which he says politicians should treat “as a major wake-up call.”

“We particularly welcome the call for government to accelerate the rollout of continuous water quality monitoring for microbiological faecal organisms and to conduct a fundamental review of bathing water regulations,” he said.