Strategic Resource Options

Affinity Water’s Strategic Solutions

Along with Severn Trent , the Canal & River Trust and Thames Water, we have been developing four strategic water resource options to deliver social, environmental and economic benefits for the region and communities we serve. We will update this page regularly to share our progress across these solutions and to explain what is happening and when, and how you can find out more.

Background

We provide on average 900 million litres of drinking water to approximately 3.6 million people, or 1.4 million households every day. The water we supply is currently mostly from local sources, with 65% coming from aquifers (porous rocks that store water below the ground) and 35% from rivers. We often have to move our water a considerable distance from where we take it to where we treat it and distribute it to your tap.

Every five years, Affinity Water is required to produce a Water Resources Management Plan (WRMP) setting out how it will manage water supplies over a minimum of the next 25 years. We published our revised draft WRMP on August 2023. This plan considers the key challenges we face, such as climate change, environmental protection, population growth and the risk of drought, in ensuring a resilient future supply of water for our customers.

Our draft WRMP prioritises a demand-management approach to ensuring a resilient supply of water. This includes measures such as installing meters, reducing leakage and promoting household water efficiency. However, we acknowledged that at some point significant new infrastructure (such as inter-regional transfers or reservoirs) will be required to ensure we continue to supply enough water to meet our customers’ needs.

The scale and complexity of potential new infrastructure means that long lead-in times are required; we have to plan for these solutions ahead of time, for them to be 'construction ready', should they be needed.

RAPID

To support the progression of strategic options, the Regulatory Alliance for Progressing Infrastructure Development (RAPID) has been established to help accelerate the development of new water infrastructure. It seeks to improve regulation and remove barriers to help the water sector respond to long-term water resources challenges. RAPID is comprised of representatives from Ofwat, the Environment Agency and the Drinking Water Inspectorate.

Strategic solutions

As part of our planning process, our WRMP considers a number of strategic solutions that could significantly increase future supply and we have been developing these options:

  • Minworth: A source of raw water flow augmentation to support either the Severn to Thames Transfer (STT) SRO, the Grand Union Canal (GUC) SRO, or a combination of the two.
  • The Grand Union Canal Transfer (GUC): An option that utilises the existing canal infrastructure to transfer treated wastewater from Minworth (STW) in the Midlands to Affinity Water in Hertfordshire and North West London.
  • The South East Strategic Reservoir (SESRO): a proposed new reservoir located near Abingdon (Oxfordshire) that offers storage and a resilient supply of raw water to the River Thames during periods of low flow, for subsequent re-abstraction in London.
  • The Thames to Affinity Transfer: A raw water transfer that could use a variety of potential source waters (three possible source options SESRO, Severn Thames Transfer or London- recycling options). Two possible ‘corridors’ have been identified: 1) the fluvial Thames; 2) London Re-use - all would include new treatment works and conveyance routes.

Through our planning process Minworth and the Grand Union Canal Transfer have been selected as the first strategic schemes to be delivered with planned completion in the summer of 2032 .

Gate reports

In early July 2021, we submitted the first stage of the assessment of the SROs, called Gate 1 reports, to RAPID for detailed review, this was followed on the 14 November 2022 with the Gate 2 reports.

Additional information submitted to RAPID as part of the review process, and the draft decisions are found in the documents folder on this page.

We are now in the process of developing the Gate 3 documents.

Affinity Water’s Strategic Solutions

Along with Severn Trent , the Canal & River Trust and Thames Water, we have been developing four strategic water resource options to deliver social, environmental and economic benefits for the region and communities we serve. We will update this page regularly to share our progress across these solutions and to explain what is happening and when, and how you can find out more.

Background

We provide on average 900 million litres of drinking water to approximately 3.6 million people, or 1.4 million households every day. The water we supply is currently mostly from local sources, with 65% coming from aquifers (porous rocks that store water below the ground) and 35% from rivers. We often have to move our water a considerable distance from where we take it to where we treat it and distribute it to your tap.

Every five years, Affinity Water is required to produce a Water Resources Management Plan (WRMP) setting out how it will manage water supplies over a minimum of the next 25 years. We published our revised draft WRMP on August 2023. This plan considers the key challenges we face, such as climate change, environmental protection, population growth and the risk of drought, in ensuring a resilient future supply of water for our customers.

Our draft WRMP prioritises a demand-management approach to ensuring a resilient supply of water. This includes measures such as installing meters, reducing leakage and promoting household water efficiency. However, we acknowledged that at some point significant new infrastructure (such as inter-regional transfers or reservoirs) will be required to ensure we continue to supply enough water to meet our customers’ needs.

The scale and complexity of potential new infrastructure means that long lead-in times are required; we have to plan for these solutions ahead of time, for them to be 'construction ready', should they be needed.

RAPID

To support the progression of strategic options, the Regulatory Alliance for Progressing Infrastructure Development (RAPID) has been established to help accelerate the development of new water infrastructure. It seeks to improve regulation and remove barriers to help the water sector respond to long-term water resources challenges. RAPID is comprised of representatives from Ofwat, the Environment Agency and the Drinking Water Inspectorate.

Strategic solutions

As part of our planning process, our WRMP considers a number of strategic solutions that could significantly increase future supply and we have been developing these options:

  • Minworth: A source of raw water flow augmentation to support either the Severn to Thames Transfer (STT) SRO, the Grand Union Canal (GUC) SRO, or a combination of the two.
  • The Grand Union Canal Transfer (GUC): An option that utilises the existing canal infrastructure to transfer treated wastewater from Minworth (STW) in the Midlands to Affinity Water in Hertfordshire and North West London.
  • The South East Strategic Reservoir (SESRO): a proposed new reservoir located near Abingdon (Oxfordshire) that offers storage and a resilient supply of raw water to the River Thames during periods of low flow, for subsequent re-abstraction in London.
  • The Thames to Affinity Transfer: A raw water transfer that could use a variety of potential source waters (three possible source options SESRO, Severn Thames Transfer or London- recycling options). Two possible ‘corridors’ have been identified: 1) the fluvial Thames; 2) London Re-use - all would include new treatment works and conveyance routes.

Through our planning process Minworth and the Grand Union Canal Transfer have been selected as the first strategic schemes to be delivered with planned completion in the summer of 2032 .

Gate reports

In early July 2021, we submitted the first stage of the assessment of the SROs, called Gate 1 reports, to RAPID for detailed review, this was followed on the 14 November 2022 with the Gate 2 reports.

Additional information submitted to RAPID as part of the review process, and the draft decisions are found in the documents folder on this page.

We are now in the process of developing the Gate 3 documents.

  • The Grand Union Canal Transfer - find out more

    supporting image

    The Grand Union Canal Transfer is a vital new scheme to bring water from the Midlands to the Southeast. It’s a joint water transfer project between two water companies, Severn Trent and Affinity Water, and the Canal & River Trust charity (‘the Trust’) who are the owner and navigation authority of the canals in England and Wales.

    The canal network has transported people and goods for over two centuries and it’s busier now than ever before. More boats and people are visiting, and living on or by the canals, and it’s supporting waterway dependent businesses. We now want to use it to help transfer recycled water from the Midlands to the Southeast via the Coventry, Oxford, and Grand Union canals in addition to their navigation role.

    The scheme would ultimately be funded through Affinity Water customer bills, but in accordance with Ofwat’s requirements (the water industry regulator) we are exploring potential options for a third-party entity to finance, construct and operate it. This funding model has been used on other projects and Ofwat is keen that we explore similar options for the Grand Union Canal Transfer. We’ll provide more detail on this as the scheme develops.

    We’ve been carrying out early work over a number of years to understand how the transfer would work and what infrastructure could be required to facilitate it. We’re now at a stage where we can present more information on this and currently at non-statutory public consultation from 11 September 2024 to 25 October 2024.

    To find out more please go to guctransfer.co.uk



Page last updated: 18 Oct 2024, 03:26 PM