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This website has been created using the best information available to GARD at the time of its compilation. The opinions expressed are based on GARD’s perception of the issues involved and the stance taken by Thames Water.

 

 
 

GARD’S ALTERNATIVES

GARD'S PRIORITIES FOR ADDRESSING FUTURE WATER SUPPLY PROBLEMS

 

GARD believes that the primary aims of any Water Resource plan to address the water shortages in the South-East (overwhelmingly a London problem) should be to provide a secure, sustainable and resilient system against the future population increases, climate change and possible prolonged drought.
This would be achieved by:

  • Proper stewardship of scarce resources – reducing Leakage as a priority, and making large gains in efficient use of water.

  • Bringing new sources of water into the South-east via:

    • Transfer of water from areas with more rainfall/resources;

    • Recycling waste water for re-use (after treatment to the highest standards);

    • Extending desalination of coastal seawater and brackish estuary water.

GARD's professionally-assisted researches show that there is enough water for London's increased population needs, even with climate change taken into account, from the following environmentally sustainable sources:

  • transfer of raw water from River Severn to the River Thames (the Severn Thames Transfer or STT) and from the Midlands to the Chilterns via the Grand Union Canal (GUC) scheme;

  • increased water re-use in the London area;

  • more water desalination plants, particularly around the South Coast; and, very importantly

  • reducing Thames Water's atrocious leakage rate and reducing water consumption per household by increased water metering and education. Thames Water should aim for the ‘Industry Average’ Leakage and Water Efficiency rates by 2050. TW's leakage performance is the worst of all the UK water companies (click here to see the Consumer Council for Water's 2016 report).

GARD believes strongly, after thorough professional investigation, that there is no need for an Abingdon reservoir of any size. Moreover, even a large reservoir would not be resilient against a prolonged drought, dependent as it would be on ‘in-water’ area from the local Thames, and would run out of water relatively quickly.
GARD’s headline actions for the WRSE Regional Plan would be:

  • Advance the Grand Union Canal Phase 2 scheme to start immediately on completion of Phase 1 – ie. in 2031 – it would then be ready by 2036, rather than 2040.

  • Start the Severn Thames Transfer Phase 1 (Supported by Severn Trent Water resources in the Midlands) from 2027 to be ready by 2035

The two actions above would remove the need for the Reservoir before 2050.

  • Ensure Thames Water reaches industry average leakage by 2050 (not just halves its own leakage).

  • Ensure Thames Water reaches the Government per capita consumption target of 100 litres per person per day by 2050 (so far it is refusing to comply)

  • Re-evaluate whether it is better to revive the plan to build a Desalination Plant at Fawley for Southern Water’s needs, rather than transfer piped water from the Thames Valley.

     The water resource situation will of course, be monitored regularly, and, if climate change effects are more severe, the possibility of inaugurating Phase 2 of the Severn Thames Transfer, supported by North Wales and North West water sources, could be implemented in a 5-year timespan, as the pipeline over the Cotswolds would already exist from Phase 1.