Upgrade at Layer treatment works

 

Layer treatment works, near Colchester, provides treated water to 750,000 people.

The works was originally built in the 1930s with subsequent upgrades and refurbishments taking place in the 1950s and 1970s.

As demand increases and more pressure is put on the existing infrastructure further upgrades and refurbishment are required.

A £3.8m project was carried out in 2005 to provide a more robust filtration process to algal-laden waters.

A £2m programme is currently underway to modify the secondary filters to enable the day-to-day management and maintenance of them to be more efficient. This includes the provision of concrete access ramps, flow meters and water quality monitoring. This project will be completed by the end of 2007/ beginning of 2008.

Essex & Suffolk Water also plans to construct a new treated water pumping station to satisfy increasing demand.  It is currently estimated that this project will cost in the region of £10m and that work will start in early 2007.