Southern Water is encouraging Isle of Wight customers to have their say in a public consultation on proposals for a new water recycling plant at Sandown.
The Isle of Wight Water Recycling Project will provide a new, sustainable source of water for customers on the Island and reduce reliance on the mainland, particularly in times of drought
Currently, around one-third of the Isle of Wight’s water supply comes from the River Test in Hampshire and is pumped across to the Island via the Cross-Solent Main.
However, the amount the company can take from the Test has been significantly reduced to protect this rare and delicate chalk stream ecosystem.
Along with reductions in leakage and improvements in water efficiency, a new source of water is needed to maintain the Island’s supplies, which are also under pressure from a growing population and changing climate.
The water company is planning to use an advanced treatment technique called water recycling to turn highly treated wastewater from its Sandown Wastewater Treatment Works into purified recycled water.
The project at Sandown involves using a new four-stage wastewater treatment process that will treat the water to a high standard before pumping it to the new advanced treatment process. These further stages of treatment include reverse osmosis, where membranes with holes more than 50,000 smaller than the width of a human hair are used to filter out dissolved impurities.
The purified recycled water would be pumped along a new 3.2km pipeline into the Eastern River Yar at Alverstone at times of lower river levels.
Water from the river would be taken further downstream at Sandown Water Supply Works, where it would be treated to drinking water standards before being supplied to customers across the Island.
The project would be capable of producing up to 8.5 million litres of purified recycled water a day.
The six-week consultation is an opportunity for people to give their views on the project, including the pipeline route, construction timetable and environmental considerations. Views from the consultation will inform an upcoming planning application.
Southern Water has been holding a series of drop-in sessions – the next one will take place at Alverstone Old School Hall between 3pm and 7.30pm on Friday 7 February.
Customers can also give feedback on the plans via an online survey until 9 March.
Southern Water’s Managing Director for Water Tim McMahon said:
“We’re keen to hear what people think as we continue to develop our plans for the Isle of Wight Water Recycling Project.
"Water recycling will help us use water that is otherwise wasted to provide a resilient, sustainable, source for the Island’s growing population – reducing reliance on the mainland and keeping taps and rivers flowing.”
Deadline to submit comments online on the proposals is 9th March.
Click here for more information about the prohject and to access the consultation online
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