Scottish Water is about to start a major £2.9 million project which will improve drinking water quality for more than 65,000 people across the Greenock area.

The scheme will involve the upgrading of more than 27 miles of water mains across Greenock and in Skelmorlie to tackle the problem of discoloured water which has affected some customers in the past.

Mr Jim Hassan, Scottish Water’s water operations manager, said:

“Scottish Water is delighted to be starting this major project to invest in key stretches of our water infrastructure in the Greenock area and in Skelmorlie.

“We are committed to improving our services to customers across Scotland and this project is a good example of that.

“The pipes we will be working on are ageing and our improvement work will help ensure a supply of clear, fresh drinking water for years to come.”

The work, which will be carried out for Scottish Water by contractors George Leslie, will involve the relining of 18 miles of mains, the cleaning and swabbing of about eight miles of mains and the replacement of about one mile of mains.

The project is due to start on about October 22 in the Larkfield area of Greenock and will continue on a rolling basis across parts of Greenock over the next eight months.