South West Water has responded following claims that sewage ran into the water at Prince Of Wales Pier, Falmouth on Tuesday.

It is believed that the flap-valve on the discharge pipe, which is designed to prevent harbour water from entering the pipe, is faulty and therefore allowed some of the trapped debris to be washed into the harbour.

Operators were called and inspected the overflow.

A spokesperson for South West Water said:

"We received a report of suspected pollution at the Prince of Wales Pier in Falmouth at around 8.30am on Tuesday (30th) and attended shortly after to investigate.

"Our operators inspected the permitted stormwater overflow outfall at the pier, which has recorded no discharges since 15th June.

"We discovered debris on the overflow screen which is used to prevent solid materials from being discharged during such events."

South West Water said they will begin cleaning the screen to remove the build-up of debris, and inspecting both the screen and the outfall flap-valve to ensure they are working correctly.

The spokesperson added:

"We would encourage members of the public who see something they think may be sewage pollution to contact us as soon as possible on 0344 346 2020 so that we can investigate."