Thames Water has set out plans to build a new £25 million drinking water pipeline will significantly reduce the amount of water taken every day from the River Kennet.

The proposed pipeline, which will be 18.2km long and take 18 months to build, means Thames Water will be able to reduce its licence to take water from the River Kennet groundwater source by 50%. The Environment Agency announced in July that it was making changes to Thames Water’s abstraction licence from April 2017.

Pipeline would go around the Roman settlement of Durocornovium, under the M4 motorway and London to Bristol railway line

Thames Water’s proposed £25 million scheme will allay Environment Agency and Action for the River Kennet (ARK) fears that water removed at Axford and Ogbourne treatment works has a detrimental impact on the iconic chalk stream, which is listed as a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI).

Its solution of a new 18.2km pipe to carry water from north to south Swindon means the company will reduce the amount of water it currently takes from the Kennet, one of only 200 chalk streams in the world and home to species like water voles and brown trout.

The proposed pipe will cross under the M4, the London to Bristol railway line and swerve around a Roman settlement to link Swindon homes to Farmoor reservoir in Oxfordshire, which takes its water from the River Thames. Plans have been submitted to Swindon Borough Council and Wiltshire Council with work hoping to start by May 2015.

Charlotte Hitchmough, director, Action for the River Kennet, said:

“We are very excited to see this project really starting to happen now. It will provide protection for one of England’s best loved chalk streams, and we look forward to seeing a healthier river from 2016.”

Reductions for the Kennet are part of a national programme to help restore sustainable abstractions, the removal of water from natural sources, across England. The proposed 20-inch in diameter pipeline will mean Thames Water can completely stop taking groundwater from the River Og area (which feeds into the Kennet) and reduce by half the amount of groundwater it takes out of the Kennet catchment at Axford.

Sally Coble, Environment Planning and Engagement Manager at the Environment Agency said:

“The proposed pipeline will help to improve the river Kennet chalk stream and protect the important habitat and wildlife it supports. The river Kennet is just one example of the Environment Agency’s programme of abstraction licences under review across the country. Our programme will improve water levels in rivers, lakes and marshes, enhance wildlife habitats and help protected species”.

Steve Tuck, Thames Water’s abstraction manager, said:

“We’re always conscious of the need to provide our customers with a reliable source of water while protecting the environment. We’re really pleased to be building a new pipeline that will help us do both.

“We agree with the Environment Agency and Action for the River Kennet that we need to reduce our reliance on the Kennet and believe this pipeline will help to ensure a healthy future for this very important chalk stream, which gives so much pleasure to so many people.”