THERE will be a BBC Panorama episode next week covering the issue of water pollution in England's largest lake. 

The episode, titled The Water Pollution Cover-Up, will air on BBC 1 on Monday, December 4 at 8pm. According to the Save Windermere campaign, one of the key events the documentary will examine is the Cunsey Beck fish death in June 2022. 

The Environment Agency launched an investigation after pictures emerged of hundreds of fish lying belly-up along the two-mile stretch between Esthwaite Water and Windermere. 

The regulator has installed sondes, which are environment monitoring devices, in the beck and indicated that the death of the fish was likely due to a decrease in oxygen - most likely caused by the presence of an algal bloom. However, the agency is still investigating the incident. 

Matt Staniek from the campaign was interviewed as part of the documentary. 

He said: "United Utilities investment in Windermere has been inadequate to ensure the long-term protection of the lake. The regulator is failing to hold United Utilities accountable for breaking the law and as a result our lake is being exploited for profit and greed.

READ MORE: Save Windermere calls to stop all sewage into Windermere

"What this documentary will demonstrate to people is that the Environment Agency cannot be trusted, nor can United Utilities. Those that are working with these organisations are complicit unless they come forward to publicly call out the failures of these organisations”

An Environment Agency spokesperson said: "We take our responsibility to protect the environment very seriously and will always pursue and prosecute companies that are deliberately obstructive or misleading.

“We assess and record every incident report we receive – between 70,000 and 100,000 a year. We respond to every incident and attend those where there is a significant risk – including every category 1 or 2 incident in the North West since 2016. In the last six years we have pursued four successful criminal prosecutions against United Utilities and required the company to pay millions to environmental charities to put right the cause and effects of their offending.

“We are strengthening our regulation by expanding our specialised workforce, increasing compliance checks and using new data and intelligence tools to inform our work. We will also soon have new powers to deliver civil penalties that are quicker and easier to enforce.”

United Utilities also replied. A spokesperson said: "

We strongly refute Matt Staniek’s claim that there was any cover-up after the Cunsey Beck incident in June 2022, which the Environment Agency’s official report concluded was not related to any of United Utilities’ infrastructure.

“As we have previously stated, we refute the claim that Matt Staniek “discovered evidence of illegality” at four of our sites in the Windermere catchment.  These claims are based on flawed analysis of incomplete data.

“The economic regulator Ofwat has been clear that customers will pay only once for investment to upgrade water and wastewater infrastructure.  The ambitious investment we are currently planning for Ambleside, Elterwater, Hawkshead and Near Sawrey is to meet the new requirements of the Environment Act 2021 and help us make the step change that we all want to see at Windermere."