SAVE OUR LANDS AND RIVER STEPS UP CAMPAIGN IN 2026 WITH MASSIVE PETITION LAUNCH
The Save Our Lands and River Campaign (SOLAR) is aiming to raise a massive E-petition early next year with 100.000 signatures protesting against the building of the so-called ‘Thames Sewage Pump’ in Teddington.
The organisers say: “2026 is a critical year. Thames Water plans to submit their planning application around October2026. The project is now classified as a National Infrastructure Project overseen by the Planning Inspectorate. The fight is very much still on. It could take up to 2 years to get all the agreements they need.”
It adds: “Our Big Goal for 2026 is 100,000 signatures. We are launching a government E-petition. If we reach 100,000 signatures in 6 months, we can trigger consideration for a public debate in Parliament.
“This gives us potentially some 30-45 minutes of airtime from Parliament. Public pressure is our biggest leverage – We achieved 15,000 responses to the consultation—10x the normal rate—but we need to scale up now.
“We are currently putting time around planning how we go for this and when – likely March 2026 launch. We need your support on this. The Thames Sewage Pump remains a dreadful choice as a scheme to solve the challenges faced.”
The E-petition is due to be launched on 3rd March 2026 art 6.30pm at the Wharf restaurant, 22 Manor Road , Teddington.
Solar described the Thames Sewage Pump scheme as a ‘masterclass of absurdity.’
It says: “3 years ago we started looking at Thames Water’s proposed Teddington Direct River Abstraction (TDRA) scheme. None of us were water management experts. In many ways we remain curious novices but we have come up the learning curve a bit. Something has always felt a bit odd about ‘The Thames Sewage ump’.
“The challenges for all water companies around climate change, population growth, improving environmental standards, and drought/flood resilience and the range of uncertainty were clear. 3 years in we are now convinced The Thames Sewage Pump scheme is a financially driven scheme that’s in Thames Water’s best interest via bill increases but in the face of better alternatives fails the customer and the environment.”