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Delivering the reservoirs
Construction of the new reservoirs, subject to planning consent, could begin around 2030 and at the earliest, they could start supplying water to homes by the mid to late 2030s.
The volume of water the reservoirs can hold means they are Nationally Significant Infrastructure Projects (NSIPs) and are treated separately from local authority planning processes.
About Nationally Significant Infrastructure
The government agency responsible for examining NSIPs is the Planning Inspectorate. We will work with them as we prepare our applications and submit it for acceptance. Once accepted by the Planning Inspectorate, a panel of inspectors will be appointed who will then examine the applications before making a recommendation to the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) as to whether the project should be granted development consent. It is the Secretary of State that makes the final decision.
You can find out more about this process on the Planning Inspectorate's website.
Help shape our proposals
Local people and stakeholders have an important role to play to help inform how the projects are developed and designed. During this pre-application phase, we will be gathering your feedback to help shape our proposals before we submit the applications to the Planning Inspectorate.
What happens next?
Our phase two consultations are open from 30 May until 9 August 2024.
For the consultations we are asking for your feedback on:
- Our emerging design for the reservoirs (main sites). This shows opportunities for recreational, wildlife, nature and other features.
- Our early-stage proposals for wider areas of land in the vicinity of the reservoirs we could need for environmental mitigation and enhancement, construction, or wider uses.
- Areas we identified for the water sources infrastructure needed to transfer water from sources to the reservoirs, and the water supply infrastructure needed to treat the water stored at the reservoirs, and supply it to homes and businesses.
- Supporting information about our approach to a range of topics that we know are important to people
To find out more about our proposals for a new reservoir in Lincolnshire and take part in the consultation, visit the project website here.
To find out more about our proposals for a new reservoir in the Fens and take part in this consultation, visit the project website here.