Two beaches near Kate Middleton's country retreat have been subject to sewage warnings a month after the princess revealed her love of cold water swimming.
Surfers Against Sewage has been campaigning against the release of sewage into rivers and the ocean off Britain's coast, which it says "puts water users at risk of contracting harmful illnesses."
The organization also issues public health warnings when specific beaches are affected.
Hunstanton and Heacham, two of the closest beaches to Kate's Norfolk retreat, Anmer Hall, were subject to warnings after "storm sewage" was discharged into the sea.
The Wales children are off from school this week for their half-term holidays, while Prince William is preparing to head to Singapore for November's Earthshot Prize ceremony, which recognizes efforts to repair the environment.
Meanwhile, an environmental problem had been unfolding closer to home, with public health warnings issued in Norfolk.
In a September appearance on The Good, the Bad & the Rugby podcast, Kate said she enjoyed "cold swimming—the colder, the better. I absolutely love it. Slightly to the point where William's [saying] 'You're crazy' and it's dark and it's raining. I will go and seek out cold water. I love it."
Cold water swimming and wild swimming in rivers have become increasingly popular activities in Britain. Meanwhile, the impact of dumping raw sewage has become a cause célèbre for the opposition Labour Party.
The fact that beaches so close to William and Kate's Norfolk holiday home have been affected shows the potential for the problem of sewage pollution to affect the highest echelons of U.K. society as well as those with more humble backgrounds.
Steve Reed, Labour's shadow environment secretary, said in an October 9 press release: "This Conservative government is too weak to tackle this scandal. They cut back enforcement and monitoring against water companies releasing this filth, and are now failing to prosecute bosses when they are blatantly breaking the law. Labour will turn the page on years of Conservative negligence."
In April, the Conservative Party's environment secretary, Thérèse Coffey, said the government had "a clear, credible and costed legally binding target" that would help "solve this issue whilst keeping consumer bills low," The Huffington Post reported.
The Surfers Against Sewage warnings for Hunstanton and Heacham read: "Pollution Alert: Storm sewage has been discharged from a sewer overflow in this location within the past 48 hours."
The organization describes Hunstanton as "famous for its red and white striped cliffs and for being the only coastal town in East Anglia that faces west," while Heacham "is a gently sloping sand beach fronting a popular Norfolk seaside resort."
Jack Royston is chief royal correspondent for Newsweek, based in London. You can find him on X, formerly Twitter, at @jack_royston and read his stories on Newsweek's The Royals Facebook page.
Do you have a question about King Charles III, William and Kate, Meghan and Harry, or their family that you would like our experienced royal correspondents to answer? Email royals@newsweek.com. We'd love to hear from you.
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Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
About the writer
Jack Royston is Newsweek's Chief Royal Correspondent based in London, U.K. He reports on the British royal family—including King Charles ... Read more
