Southern Water plans to recycle wastewater in Hampshire

A public consultation over the plans will be held next year

A water recycling plant could be built in Hampshire in a bid to ease pressure on rivers during a drought.

The new facility, proposed for a site south of Havant, would turn treated wastewater into purified, recycled water.

New underground pipelines could also be built as part of the plans put forward by Southern Water.

The company has said it is developing new sources of water so less is taken from the River Test and River Itchen.

It comes after the firm became the first water company in the UK to announce a hosepipe ban, following the driest July since 1935.

According to the new plans, the water recycled at the plant near Havant would be transferred via a new underground pipeline to the Havant Thicket Reservoir, where it would mix with water from underground springs.

Another new pipeline would then transfer water from the reservoir to the Otterbourne Water Supply Works, where it would be treated further to become drinking water.

The proposals are yet to be approved and further public consultations are planned for next year.

The plans are separate from the approved plans for Havant Thicket Reservoir, Southern Water said.

On Friday, Councillor Alex Rennie, leader of Havant Borough Council, called for the proposals for the reservoir to be reconsidered after it was revealed it would use recycled water.