Save the River Cam

Fix The Locks!

The Jesus Green and Baits Bite locks on the River Cam are in a critical condition, with both structures closed since June 2024 due to serious safety concerns after surveys revealed that both lock islands are in imminent danger of collapse. A cost of £1.5 million is required per lock for immediate stabilisation work and at least £5 million per lock for full reconstruction. Without guaranteed government funding, the locks could fail completely. This would make the River Cam unusable for boating and punting for which Cambridge is world famous. Boat owners have already been stranded for a year due to the lock closure.

Most concerningly, the River Cam is part of England’s precious chalk stream ecosystem. The Cam supports wildlife including perch, pike and bream, and you will often spot kingfishers, grey heron and cormorants. The Cam catchment is already suffering from over-abstraction causing chronically low flows, agricultural run-off and sewage discharge. The lock islands support the weirs and sluices which are crucial for maintaining water levels.

Stop The Sewage!

Cambridge's river is one of the most treasured things about our city. This bank holiday weekend, thousands of us headed to the Cam — to punt, to paddle, to walk the banks and enjoy the sunshine. It was glorious.

But here's what we also need to talk about.

The River Cam is one of only around 200 chalk streams in the entire world. 85% of all chalk streams are found in the UK — and the Cam is among the most precious of them all. It supports a rich and fragile ecosystem of wildlife, plants and aquatic life. It drives a £835 million tourism industry in Cambridge and sustains over 10% of jobs in our city, including the world-famous punting industry which alone generates over £3 million every year.

And it is being pumped full of sewage.

What's happening to our river?

Anglian Water's Haslingfield sewage treatment plant sits just a few miles upstream from Cambridge city centre. In 2023, it spilled untreated sewage into the Cam for over 3,000 hours — polluting the river for more than a third of the entire year.

Across their regional network, Anglian Water caused 482 pollution incidents in 2024 alone — second only to Thames Water nationally.

These are not accidents. They are the predictable consequence of a regulatory system with no real teeth, water company bosses with no personal accountability, and a government that has repeatedly chosen not to act.

The bathing area — good news with a catch

Cambridge has just achieved something genuinely positive — a designated bathing area on the River Cam. This is a step forward we should celebrate.

But a bathing designation is only meaningful if the water is actually safe to bathe in. Right now, that cannot be guaranteed while Anglian Water continues to discharge sewage upstream without adequate consequence.

The designation gives us a new lever. We intend to use it.

What the Liberal Democrats are demanding

Cambridge's Liberal Democrats, backed by Lib Dem Leader Sir Ed Davey who visited the Cam to see the damage for himself, are calling for:

Real powers for water regulators — the current system allows water companies to treat fines as a cost of doing business. We need automatic, substantial penalties that actually hurt.

Personal liability for water company executives — if you are profiting from a company that pumps sewage into a chalk stream, you should face personal consequences. Bonuses while rivers are polluted is not acceptable.

Immediate upgrades at Haslingfield treatment plant — Anglian Water must fast-track the infrastructure investment needed to stop these discharges now, not on a timetable that suits their balance sheet.

What you can do

Cheney Payne is Cambridge's Liberal Democrat candidate and has been leading this campaign locally. She is calling on Daniel Zeichner, Cambridge's Labour MP, to join this fight — and to tell Cambridge clearly what he is doing to hold Anglian Water to account.

Sign our petition. Write to your MP. And watch the Cam.

Because this river belongs to all of us — and we're not going to let it be treated as a sewer.