Crap Towns / Harlow / Pollution incidents
How often does Harlow get polluted?
7 serious pollution incidents have been recorded in Harlow or within 1 km of it since 2016, the joint 164th most of the 948 English towns that have had one. The most recent came in October 2025 and put an unidentified pollutant on the land. Crude sewage turned up in 3 of them.
| When | What | Where | Impact |
|---|---|---|---|
| October 2025 | An unidentified pollutant | On the land | Significant |
| November 2024 | Crude sewage | In the water | Significant |
| November 2022 | Paint | In the water | Significant |
| August 2020 | An unidentified pollutant | In the water | Significant |
| January 2019 | Crude sewage | In the water | Significant |
| June 2018 | Crude sewage | In the water | Significant |
| October 2017 | Flies | In the air | Significant |
| Town | Distance | Serious incidents since 2016 |
|---|---|---|
| Harlow | – | 7 |
| Hoddesdon | 8.8 km | 6 |
| Cheshunt | 13.0 km | 5 |
| Bishop's Stortford | 11.7 km | 3 |
| Loughton | 13.3 km | 3 |
| Ware | 11.4 km | 3 |
| Sawbridgeworth | 5.2 km | 2 |
| Waltham Abbey | 11.8 km | 2 |
| Hertford | 14.3 km | 1 |
| Waltham Cross | 13.3 km | 1 |