[January 2023]
Three public consultations are currently being run on a major new infrastructure project that Southern Water is planning for our area.
The company wants to lay miles and miles of pipelines across southern Hampshire, with a sizeable stretch running smack through the heart of our Borough.
Amongst other aims, they plan to pump “recycled” water derived from sewage at Budds Farm up into the new Havant Thicket reservoir – water that will then be piped back to us as drinking water.
Southern Water have a shocking record of environmental mismanagement, including the deliberate discharge of huge volumes of raw sewage into Langstone Harbour.
Last year the government’s Environment Agency awarded Southern Water its worst possible rating for environmental performance, describing the company as ‘appalling’.
So should we trust them with this huge new environmentally sensitive project?
St Faiths Labour says:
Do we really want recycled sewage water coming out of our taps?
The construction of Havant Thicket Reservoir has now started. It is projected to be in operation by 2030. It has been planned for a long time but at the eleventh hour a new proposal was made by Southern Water to pump their recycled sewage into the reservoir to supplement the supply from natural rainfall. We think this is not a good idea, because
- We get plenty of rain to collect and store. Why do we need recycled sewage water?
- The water from the reservoir will taste different – will you want to drink it, and if not will more people be buying bottled water and damage the environment further?
- It requires infrastructure to be built at a large cost which we will have to pay for in our bills!
- The recycled effluent will have an adverse impact on the wetlands and biodiversity.”
The ever-vigilant Havant Civic Society have published their analysis and commentary on the proposals, here:
havantcivicsociety.uk/southern-waters-water-recycling-proposal
We urge you to read HCS’s article and to submit your own views to the consultations by following these links:
- Southern Water: southernwater.co.uk/our-story/water-resources-management-plan/wrmp24-survey
- Water Resources South East: wrse.uk.engagementhq.com/our-consultation
- Portsmouth Water: haveyoursayportsmouthwater.uk.engagementhq.com/how-to-have-your-say
The closing date for submissions to all three consultations is Monday 20th February 2023.
A related letter to the press from a Labour Party member is here.
If you have new information on this, or any other local matters, or if there is something else you would like us to look into, please contact us on stfaiths@havantlabour.uk.
