Cambridgeshire: Anglian Water company announces plans for new reservoir

The proposed location for the reservoir is land north of Chatteris, near Doddington and Wimblington

A proposed location for a new reservoir in the Cambridgeshire Fens has been announced.

Anglian Water said the facility, situated east of the A141 between Chatteris and Doddington, would supply water for about 250,000 homes.

A spokesman said it had found "the best-performing location" after a "thorough" selection process.

He added it would "meet the challenges of a changing climate and a growing population".

A very early concept design for the Fens reservoir shows some of the potential features they hope to include

Anglian Water supplies drinking water to 4.3 million customers across the East of England including in Bedfordshire, Buckinghamshire, Cambridgeshire, Essex, Lincolnshire, Norfolk, Northamptonshire and Suffolk.

This project, developed in partnership with Cambridge Water, forms part of both organisations' long-term water resources management plans for the next 25 years.

They said the plans aimed to ensure the region was resilient to more frequent drought, brought on by climate change, and also involved improved environmental protection.

As well as supplying homes, Anglian Water said the reservoir would allow for a reduction in the amount of water taken from rivers, chalk streams and underground aquifers.

It would also create a new visitor destination and "wider economic, environmental, leisure and health benefits for the local community".

Water resources strategy manager, Dr Geoff Darch, said that to "keep taps running... we'll need more water storage in our region, in the form of new reservoirs".

He added that they wanted to "create a place where water, people and nature come together".

"Following a thorough and multi-stage site selection process... we have now identified the best performing location," he said.

"We know the effect on those impacted by our proposals, including homeowners, landowners and the nearby community, because we've already been speaking to those most directly affected.

"The new reservoir will store more water, so it's always on tap when we need it, meeting the challenges of a changing climate and a growing population."

The first phase of public consultation begins on Wednesday - when details of the selection process would also be made public - lasting for 10 weeks.

"We are committed to working with everyone as the project develops and want to hear all views on our emerging proposals," Dr Darch added.