Yorkshire Water has started work on the installation of a new water main between Thornton Moor and Haworth as part of its drought resilience planning.
The £4.5 million investment will see contract partner M Group installing over 6.1km of clean water pipework, connecting the Keighley area to an additional water source to reduce the risk of supply interruption during drought conditions.
The new main will connect to an existing service reservoir at Thornton Moor, which stores clean drinking water.
Jason Farrar, project manager at Yorkshire Water, said:
“We know that droughts are becoming increasingly common in the UK, and we’re constantly looking at when and where we need to build more resilience into our water network. This is an important scheme for the area, alleviating some of the pressure felt in instances of drought when water resources might be running lower than usual.”
The first part of the project will see the new main laid on Keighley Road, Denholme Road, and Black Moor Road in Oxenhope, Bradford.
The work is expected to be completed in autumn 2026. Residents have been informed about localised disruption.
Installation of the main follows previous investments in the Worth Valley area to boost resilience in the clean water system – including network reconfiguration and the reduction of leakage by 70%, now at a historical low.
A £1.5 million scheme is also underway at Ponden Water Pumping Station, which pumps raw water from Ponden reservoir to Oldfield Water Treatment Works, to improve resilience by enabling the site to take more water for treatment.
Yorkshire Water is continuing to bolster its clean water network elsewhere, with test boreholes currently being drilled at East Ness in North Yorkshire, and Brayton Barff in East Yorkshire.
Boreholes are used to extract water from deep underground, where it is naturally filtered through soil and rock, requiring minimal treatment before it is safe to use. If successful, these boreholes will help secure a sustainable water supply to meet Yorkshire’s growing customer demand and changing climate.
Next week Yorkshire Water’s contract partners Galliford Try will also start work on a £2.1 million project to replace 5.5km of water mains in Sykehouse, Goole.
Shaun Chapman, project manager, Yorkshire Water, said:
“We are upgrading our clean water infrastructure, prioritising poor performing assets that will benefit most from mains replacement. This forms part of our £406 million investment to renew over 1,000km of clean water mains across the region by 2030
“On completion, this project will reduce the likelihood of bursts or loss of supply in the future, so we can deliver the quality and reliability of service that our customers expect. Our partners will be working as quickly as they can to keep disruption to a minimum and we’d like to thank residents and the local community for their patience while they undertake this important upgrade.”
The project is the latest of 20km of mains replacement schemes in and around Goole, including clean water mains at Wheatley Hills, Wroot and Skelton.
Over the next five years Yorkshire Water is set to invest £8.3 billion ito upgrade its infrastructure and improve services for customers.
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