Southern Water and its supply change partners have completed a major £13.8 million upgrade to a Surrey wastewater works, overhauling how wastewater is treated at its Lingfield works.
The multi-million pound investment will improve the quality of the treated water leaving the site – and reduce its reliance on storm overflows at times of heavy and sustained rainfall.
A key part of the 18-month upgrade has seen a new high-tech treatment process introduced to cut phosphorous levels in the final effluent which is released into neighbouring Eden Brook by more than 85%.
The construction of new tanks, pipework, pumps and other infrastructure has boosted the capacity of the site, so it can treat over 50 per cent more wastewater than before – up from 83 litres per second to 127 litres per second.
Completion of the project means it is much less likely the works will become overloaded by sudden influxes of rainwater during very wet weather, requiring storm overflows to release excess volumes into the environment to avoid flooding to the local community.
John Penicud, Southern Water’s Director of Wastewater Operations, said:
“The upgrade of our Lingfield plant is good news for local waterways. By removing more phosphorous and increasing the amount of wastewater we can treat we’re able to both improve water quality and reduce the use of storm overflows. It’s part on our ongoing investment in our wastewater network.”
The works were carried out by contractor CMDP, a joint venture between Costain and MWH Treatment, as one of a range of schemes it is delivering to maintain and improve Southern Water’s water supply and wastewater treatment works.
The completion of the Lingfield project is the latest in a series of multi-million pound upgrades Southern Water has made at its sites in recent months including investment of more than £14 million at Lavant and Tangmere in West Sussex, £7 million of upgrades at East Boldre in the New Forest and Handcross in West Sussex, and more than £11 million invested in wastewater treatment works in Roud, Shalfleet, and Calbourne on the Isle of Wight.
Anthony Voltz, CMDP’s programme manager for Lingfield, added:
“CMDP and our supply chain partners are delighted to be involved with the upgrade works at Lingfield on behalf of Southern Water. It has been a complex scheme to deliver due to the relatively limited space for new assets and the density of the below ground services. The team have risen to the challenge and successfully implemented the new scheme safely without interruption to the existing assets. The commissioning of these new assets enhances the quality of treated water returning to the environment, which improves the adjacent watercourse and has a direct benefit to the local community”.
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