Havant Thicket hosts minister as drought remains in three-quarters of England

(by Karma Loveday)

Portsmouth Water last week showed environment secretary Dame Angela Eagle work to date on the Havant Thicket reservoir in Hampshire, as the National Drought Group (NDG) met to discuss the ongoing drought situation.

No drought status changes were made: 71.3% of England remains in drought, with 30m people affected by usage restrictions. July and August were dry months with 10% and 78% of rainfall respectively. The NDG reported that rivers had responded to the recent rain; around 22% of sites are now 'notably low' or lower, with 47% 'below normal' or lower. Reservoir storage is 58% – a fall of 1.8% in the previous week and 19.2% below the long-term average for this time of year.

Once complete, Havant Thicket will provide an additional 21m litres of water a day, sourced from local spring water. Together, Havant Thicket and the broader pipeline of nine new reservoirs and water transfer schemes is expected to add around 700m litres of water a day by 2050.

Bob Taylor, CEO of Portsmouth Water, said: “New, sustainable sources of water are essential for building resilience to drought, particularly here in the severely water-stressed South East. That’s why we’re proud to be building Havant Thicket Reservoir, the first new major reservoir to be built in the UK for more than 30 years. The reservoir will play a vital role in protecting two of Hampshire’s precious chalk rivers. We were delighted to show the secretary of state the excellent progress we have made on site since the big build phase of construction started last Spring.”

• In its representation to the Planning Inspectorate on Southern Water’s draft Development Consent Order application for the Hampshire Water Transfer and Water Recycling Project, Portsmouth Water has raised concerns. Portsmouth said it supported the principle of Southern’s scheme, which would see purified recycled water supplementing spring water in Havant Thicket to boost its output. But it has objected to some of the terms of the Order.

It explained: “In summary, the draft Order would permit another undertaker to direct how Portsmouth Water operates its own reservoir; would remove Portsmouth Water’s protected right at that reservoir while guaranteeing the applicant a minimum abstraction; would require the applicant’s consent before Portsmouth Water could apply to its own regulator in connection with its own asset; would leave the protections on which Portsmouth Water depends incomplete or unsecured; and would take Portsmouth Water’s operational land by compulsion.”

The company added: “Portsmouth Water considers its objections are capable of resolution and looks forward to working with the applicant (both within and outside the Examination) to achieve this.” It emphasised: “It is essential Portsmouth Water’s concerns are met to its satisfaction.”