Affinity Water closes its first pumping station

Affinity Water has reduced the amount of water it takes from the environment by enough to allow it to turn off its first pumping station.

The company made a commitment in its business plan to reduce abstractions by 42 million litres per day by 2020 and by 70 million litres per day by 2025 – nearly 5 per cent of its supply.

The pumping station in St Albans has been used since the 1960s, and Affinity Water believes halting abstractions will benefit flows in the Ver chalk stream and surrounding environment. The turn-off of the pumping station  will reduce abstraction by around six million litres per day.

Chalk streams are a globally rare habitat and there are around 240 chalk streams in England, of which around 10 per cent are located in Affinity Water’s supply area.

The company has committed to deliver river restoration and habitat enhancement projects on The Ver and six other chalk streams, in partnership with the Environment Agency (EA), to restore them to a more natural state.

Affinity Water chief executive Simon Cocks said that key to the abstraction reduction was working in partnership with the EA and other stakeholders.

“We believe that leaving more water in the environment and working in partnership with the EA, to deliver improvements to local habitats, will benefit communities by restoring our precious chalk stream habitats and we will be monitoring water flows and the ecology to assess the effectiveness of these changes,” he said.

EA acting chair Emma Howard-Boyd commented: “This is a fantastic example of what can be achieved when we work together with companies like Affinity Water. I look forward to seeing the environment around the Ver chalk stream improve as a result of this project.

“The Environment Agency’s wide review of abstraction licences has so far resulted in 27 million cubic meters of water per year being put back into the environment.

“But there is much more to do – and everyone has a role to play in using water wisely.”

Affinity Water supplies water to 3.5 million people living and working in southeast England, providing them with more than 900 million litres of water per day.

IMAGE: Affinity Water’s supply area

Source: Affinity Water