Public sessions to be held on desalination plans

Events are being held in Lostwithiel and St Blazey

Plans for a desalination plant in Cornwall will be the focus of a series of public events.

South West Water (SWW) said it was hosting events throughout the month to give people the chance to provide feedback on the proposed project at Par.

The first event was held in Par on Monday, with other sessions to take place in the Church Rooms in Lostwithiel on Wednesday, and St Blazey's Alexander Hall on Thursday.

Online sessions would be held on 23 and 25 July, SWW said.

Desalination plants remove salt from seawater to produce drinking water.

SWW said in May it planned to deliver a smaller than planned desalination plant at the site later this year.

The firm said reducing the size of the plant would give it more time to develop an application for a larger plant in the future.

Campaigners last month expressed fears test drilling in St Austell Bay would destroy marine life.

'Protecting supplies'

SWW said the plant would consist of five units the size of shipping containers, which are capable of producing between 2.5 million and five million litres of drinking water per day.

David Harris, SWW's drought and resilience director, said the aim was to increase water resources by 45% in Cornwall and 30% in Devon by 2025 to help prevent droughts.

"Regulators are encouraging water companies to develop supplies that are resilient to the impacts of climate change, and desalination allows us to protect supplies across our region in the face of a changing climate in ways that more common interventions cannot," he said.

The event in Lostwithiel is due to take place from 16:00 to 19:00 BST, while doors will be open from 18:30 to 21:00 in St Blazey, SWW said.

Both online sessions will take place from 18:00 to 19:30.