SOUTHERN WATER’S NEW RIVERS & SEAS WATCH SERVICE
While we work hard to cut storm overflows across our region, as set out in our £1.5bn Clean Rivers and Seas Plan, it is key that communities can view information on all our storm overflow activity.
From 13 November 2024, our new Rivers and Seas Watch service replaced the Beachbuoy online monitoring tool.
Rivers and Seas Watch now includes all of our storm overflows including those inland, not just our coastal overflows.
Rivers and Seas Watch has been running in beta mode on our website since June. During this time, we collected feedback from users, including Beachbuoy subscribers, campaign groups and local stakeholders, to ensure Rivers and Seas Watch provides relevant information in an easy to read format. Technology experts also fed into our Beachbuoy Independent Review.
Key features of Rivers and Seas Watch include:
- Enhanced user experience across different devices (mobile, laptop, desktop), making it easier to find a location, and access and understand information
- Comprehensive and accessible information on how the service works
- An industry-leading mapping platform, presenting information in a clean and timely way
- Improved email notifications, including start times, impact times and the release status
- Integration with our overall plans to cut storm overflows, to help users understand what improvements are planned in each area
Improving how we communicate this important information to the public in a transparent, accurate and timely way is crucial. Rivers and Seas Watch has been created following a customer-first approach, engaging extensively with our community to understand their needs, wants and feedback from Beachbuoy.
Users can sign up for alerts for their local beaches on Rivers and Seas Watch, as data protection rules mean we cannot carry previous Beachbuoy users over.
