Water company bosses are scrutinising consultation responses for two new major reservoirs – one in the Cambridgeshire Fens and the other in south Lincolnshire.
Located near Chatteris, Doddington and March, the fenland reservoir is planned by Anglian Water and Cambridge Water. The Lincolnshire reservoir will be about four miles south-east of Sleaford. It is being developed by Anglian Water and Affinity Water.
Increasing demand
Both reservoirs are being developed to help meet growing demands on regional water supplies for the east of England. Together, they are expected to cost more than £4.8bn. A second consultation on the proposals closed last month.
Already one of the UK’s driest regions, the east of England faces increasing and often competing demand for water from businesses, communities and agriculture. At the same time, it faces increasing population growth.
The new reservoirs aim to strengthen the region’s drought resilience while protecting the environment by enabling a reduction in the amount of water taken from environmentally sensitive rivers and underground aquifers.
Mindful of the importance of food production, the NFU has requested that any expansion of the region’s strategic water supply infrastructure should be carried out at minimum disruption to farmers, land owners and tenants.
It has voiced concern about the impact the building of such large reservoirs will have on farm businesses and agricultural production on a permanent basis, and during construction, when more land will be required on a temporary basis.
Anglian Water says the quality of agricultural land and potential impacts were considered in the site selection process for both reservoirs. Given their size, it says all the sites considered had the potential to affect farmland.
Important issues
It said: “It is clear people want us to think carefully about effects on place and communities, roads and transport, agriculture and the local economy, and the natural environment. These are important issues for us too.”
“The site we’re proposing was the best performing of all the sites we have considered – one which balances all of the factors we considered, and that also provides significant opportunities to unlock wider benefits.”
Anglian Water says it understands the effect on those impacted by our proposals including homeowners, landowners and the nearby community. It aims to respond to the consultation in the coming months.
Huge water pipeline to boost resilience
A high-capacity pipeline is being constructed to transport water to some of the region’s driest areas.
The large-diameter, interconnecting pipelines stretching from North Lincolnshire to Essex will allow 265 million litres of water to be moved – helping to secure supplies for future generations while boosting drought resilience.
Anglian Water says the importance of the work cannot be underestimated. “Without our new drinking water grid, demand for water will outstrip supply meaning the east of England could run out of water as soon as 2030,” it adds.
25-year plan
The project forms a key part of the water company’s Water Resource Management Plan, which sets out how it will manage the region’s water supplies to meet requirements over the next 25 years.
Anglian Water chief executive Peter Simpson said: “Starting this programme is a significant part of our planned investment in the region over the next five years, which will begin to tackle those challenges and secure customer supplies well into the future.”
