Extinction Rebellion have installed blue plaques accusing Lincoln MP Karl McCartney of voting to allow sewage to pollute rivers.
The mock sign has been glued onto the bridge on Brayford Pool, near the ‘Where Have You Been?’ bridge.
Another is located on the Pyewipe footpath, and a third one in the town centre has been removed.
The Lincoln MP has always denied that Conservatives voted to allow more sewage releases under the Environment Act, calling it “deliberate misinformation.”
The sign reads: “Karl McCartney MP voted to block a law requiring water companies to dump less raw sewage in our waterways and seas (20 October 2021).”
English Heritage runs the blue plaque scheme to commemorate historical figures or buildings, and these are not genuine.
The controversy surrounds Amendment 45 to the Environment Act, which the would have required water companies to “take all reasonable steps” to avoid using sewage overflows.
Conservative MPs voted it down, saying that it was impossible to implement.
After outcry from environmental groups, the government produced its own amendment requiring water companies to “secure a progressive reduction in the adverse harm” of sewage dumps.
Extinction Rebellion has previously installed similar plaques | Photo: LDRS/The Lincolnite
The satirical plaques have also taken aim at Lincolnshire MPs Victoria Atkins (Louth and Horncastle), Lia Nici (Grimsby) and Martin Vickers (Cleethorpes).
Rosemary Robinson from Extinction Rebelloion Lincoln said: “We’ve watched in horror as our rivers and seas have become open sewers since October 2021. These plaques shine a light on the government’s failure to protect our waterways, the natural world, and all of us.
“In 2020 there were almost 2,000 sewage spills into Lincolnshire rivers, including from this overflow here on the Foss Dyke which, of course, flows into the Brayford and through the city centre.
“Incredibly, there were 126 spillages at Sincil Bank, right in the heart of the city – this equates to just nearly 3,000 hours of continuous sewage discharge in one year alone.”
Lincoln’s MP has previously defended his vote, saying: “This would have effectively set a specific timeline for infrastructure works which would have been well beyond the ability of the government, Environment Agency and water companies to implement.
MP for Lincoln, Karl McCartney. | Photo: UK Parliament
“Current cost estimates on the elimination of storm sewerage overflows range from between £150 billion to £660 billion, so it would have been utterly irresponsible to mandate a fixed timeline of work and against unknown cost estimates, without understanding the full impact of doing so.
“Had this amendment not been voted down, then much of the cost of delivering this work would have fallen immediately upon Lincoln’s taxpayers and placed an unacceptable legal and financial burden on already stretched families in the constituency I have the honour and privilege to represent.
“Like most of my colleagues, I was not willing to write a blank cheque for this against an impossible timeline and it would have been irresponsible to do so, hence I voted the way I did.”
He added that the finalised Environment Bill would already take big steps to protect waterways.
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Exciting news for MyLocal app users and The Lincolnite readers! Our latest update is now available to download from your app store and comes packed with the best local news experience you can enjoy.
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