Concerns are growing over the county's struggling sewage system and its ability to cope with thousands of new homes after overflowing drains plagued Bourne End with a “foul smell” this week.

A manhole started leaking on Marlow Road on Sunday, August 21 – leaving cars and pavements on the street splattered with the mess – much to the horror of drivers and pedestrians.

Thames Water were called out and fixed the problem the following day – however residents questioned the ability of Little Marlow Treatment Works (STW) to cope with thousands of new, should the draft Local Plan be approved.

The trouble sparked memories of previous problems caused by the STW – after Thames Water had to apologise in 2013 after sewage was spewed in to the river near Little Marlow leaving dirty tissue in the stream and a brown murky mess.

Cressington Place resident, Brian Murphy, has said the area should not be developed until the council can be sure the pipes can cope with the extra influx of homes.

He said: “Fundamentally it is a planning matter. They cannot let anything happen until the correct infrastructure is in place.

“They need a sewage plan of Bourne End and ask how they propose to connect the new houses. Are you going to use the existing pipes which have recently been blocked or are they going to build new ones?”

A spokesman for Wycombe District Council confirmed that Thames Water has advised the STW will need to be upgraded to cope with the development - if the draft Local Plan is approved.

Catherine Spalton said: “In preparing the Local Plan, we work with all of the relevant infrastructure providers to assess the quality and capacity of the transport network; utilities such as water and energy; waste disposal; health and social care; education; and flood risk.

“Thames Water, who are the predominant provider in the Wycombe district for both water supply and waste water, advise that the Little Marlow treatment works will need upgrading to accommodate further development.”

Thames Water said there have not been any prosecutions over leaking sewage over the past three years – aside from one pending case – and insisted previous problems are down to maintenance issued rather than capacity of homes.

Spokesman, Becky Trotman, said: “Any issues at the site have been operational, such as equipment failure, and not due to capacity or the number of homes it serves.

“A recent upgrade has made the works more resilient, however we continue to work closely with planning authorities and developers to assess any potential impact their plans could have on our infrastructure.

“Where necessary we’ll request certain conditions are included in the planning application process to ensure our existing customers are not negatively impacted by new developments.”

To view Wycombe District Council's infrastructure delivery plan go to www.wycombe.gov.uk/newlocalplan