Crap Towns / Kingston upon Thames / Pollution incidents
How often does Kingston upon Thames get polluted?
11 serious pollution incidents have been recorded in Kingston upon Thames or within 1 km of it since 2016, the joint 92nd most of the 948 English towns that have had one. 3 were major, the worst kind. The most recent came in March 2026 and put household waste, metal wastes, tyres and vehicle parts on the land. Crude sewage turned up in 3 of them.
| When | What | Where | Impact |
|---|---|---|---|
| March 2026 | Household waste, metal wastes, tyres and vehicle parts | On the land | Significant |
| June 2025 | An unidentified pollutant | In the water | Significant |
| July 2024 | Firefighting run-off and smoke | In the air | Major |
| September 2022 | An unidentified pollutant | In the water | Significant |
| December 2020 | Soil and clay | In the water | Significant |
| July 2020 | Crude sewage | In the water | Significant |
| February 2020 | Diesel | In the water | Significant |
| September 2019 | Crude sewage | On the land | Significant |
| July 2018 | General biodegradable material or waste | In the water | Major |
| July 2018 | General biodegradable material or waste | In the water | Major |
| February 2016 | Crude sewage | In the water and on the land | Significant |
| Town | Distance | Serious incidents since 2016 |
|---|---|---|
| Ewell | 5.5 km | 27 |
| Epsom | 6.3 km | 23 |
| Merton | 6.7 km | 18 |
| Kingston upon Thames | – | 11 |
| Sutton | 8.1 km | 10 |
| Richmond upon Thames | 6.4 km | 8 |
| Worcester Park and Stoneleigh | 2.9 km | 5 |
| Esher | 6.2 km | 1 |
| Walton-on-Thames | 8.3 km | 1 |