£3.7 Billion Tunnel Plan Proposed to End Sewage Discharges into Windermere

Windermere: A major infrastructure plan has been unveiled to stop sewage being discharged into Windermere, England’s largest lake. At its centre is a tunnel of up to 12 miles (19 kilometres) that would carry wastewater away from the Lake District landmark. Estimates of the cost put it at between £3.6 billion and £3.7 billion.

The proposal, known as “Only Rainwater into Windermere” (ORiW), is backed by a coalition that includes water company United Utilities, the Environment Agency, the Lake District National Park Authority, Westmorland and Furness Council, and the campaign groups Love Windermere and Save Windermere. United Utilities funded the feasibility study, which took 15 months.

Both raw sewage and treated effluent are currently discharged into the lake. Campaigners say this is the reason parts of Windermere turn green each summer because of algal blooms.

The plan would connect around 12,800 people to the public sewer network for the first time, through up to 86 miles (138 kilometres) of new sewage infrastructure. Wastewater would be carried through a four-metre-wide tunnel to a single new treatment works built to high standards. The scheme would also intercept highway runoff, and extensive underground tunnelling is planned to limit disruption to local communities, businesses and the landscape.

After assessing more than 70 potential solutions, the study selected two options for detailed design. Both include the tunnel. One would discharge treated effluent into the River Leven, and the other into the Irish Sea at Ulverston. United Utilities has issued an invitation to tender for the detailed design contract, and the project remains subject to regulatory and government approval.

Funding is still unresolved. Under one model, the cost would fall on United Utilities customers, adding up to £3.17 a month to bills depending on the route chosen. Love Windermere, which is linked to local businesses, wants the cost spread across customers throughout England, which would add up to 35p a month to bills.

Louise Beardmore, Chief Executive of United Utilities, described the plan as a long-term, 100-year solution for the lake. She said the usual approach of investing in five-year cycles needed to change and welcomed the joint effort by the water company, regulators, local authorities and campaigners.

Matt Staniek, founder of Save Windermere, welcomed the proposal but said it was only the start of the process, which will end only when sewage no longer enters the lake.