Partner Article

Investment delivers for Essex water supplies – and the environment – throughout the hot summer!

A brand new, 19.5km water pipeline that will safeguard water supplies for customers across Essex, has been helping to manage resources for customers during one of the dryest summers on record.

Essex & Suffolk Water’s new pipeline is not only an investment in future water resilience, supporting supplies for around 370,000 customers, its design and construction put environmental protection at its heart. The company utilised the expertise and experience of in-house teams to deliver the project within budget, supporting its ambitions to keep customers’ bills among the lowest in the country. Savings also mean that the money can go into further investment in the region’s vital infrastructure.

Construction started on the pipeline in 2023 and was completed earlier this year, connecting raw water supplies and treatment in the Layer-de-la-Haye and Langford, near Maldon, areas, has been put into operation.

During the testing period, the pipeline has already played a role in helping protect customers’ supplies, having been utilised to move water around the county, as Essex & Suffolk Water tackled the challenges of the long, hot and dry summer and its effects on  raw water sources.

It is capable of carrying up to 50 million litres of raw water a day to treatment facilities in Langford, nr Maldon.

The route of the pipeline was designed to avoid nearby areas of ecological importance, such as Abberton Reservoir, a designated Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI). As well as reinstating the working area, the team installed 4km of new hedgerow, adding biodiversity along the route, which was designed, where possible, to pass through existing hedge gaps and around trees, to protect important habitats.

The pipeline  uses gravity to drive the water’s flow throughout most of its route. This gravity system reduces the need to use pumps and, in turn, minimises ongoing energy costs and carbon consumption in the operation of the pipeline.

Along the route of the pipeline, the company’s engineers  worked with specialists to drill beneath the River Blackwater and the Langford Cut, passing the pipes through a tunnel that passed under – and avoid impacting – the two watercourses.

Partners on the project included Aquazone, Complete Moling Services and design company Stantec.

Daniel Wilson, Essex & Suffolk Water’s Project Manager, said: "The new pipeline connects raw water supplies across Essex, protecting customers’ supplies and the environment by adding flexibility to how we draw upon the area’s resources.

“This has been quite an exciting project to work on, because of the great potential it has to support around 370,000 customers – something we’ve witnessed bearing fruit during the summer.

“Mindful of both our duties to protect the environment and to invest customers’ money efficiently, we faced those challenges head on and have created a pipeline that delivers on our operational needs, our Regulatory obligations, as well as those important commitments.

“While the pipeline has largely been constructed in rural land, where we have now completed reinstatement work to restore the working areas, the project has involved crossing 19 roads and working with many landowners. We would like to take this opportunity to thank everyone who we have worked with, or who has been impacted by the work, for their patience and support."

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Northumbrian Water Group .