Agreement reached to strengthen water resilience in North Staffordshire
The Canal & River Trust has reached an agreement with Severn Trent that will provide a greater level of confidence to bolster future water resilience to parts of the canal network and water supply in North Staffordshire.
It follows the driest spring on record and drought being declared in a number of regions, including parts of the Midlands.
The Trust is making an agreed amount of water available to Severn Trent from the charity’s Caldon Canal reservoirs.
Although boating restrictions are in place on the Caldon Canal because of low water levels, the reservoir water in question currently cannot physically be fed by the Canal & River Trust into the canal this summer.
Working with the Trust to channel otherwise unavailable water from Knypersley Reservoir into the Caldon Canal, Severn Trent will then benefit from an equivalent volume of water from the Trust’s Rudyard Lake.
This solution increases the supply that the water company can make available from its Tittesworth Reservoir for homes and businesses in North Staffordshire.
The partnership will bring a significant and welcome investment into the Canal & River Trust’s canal network as Severn Trent will fund improvements to the canal feeders from both Knypersley and Rudyard reservoirs – works the charity couldn’t otherwise afford. This will increase flow to support navigation in future years.
The agreement will also see Severn Trent fund an upgrade to the dam at Rudyard Lake, further strengthening infrastructure.
Crucially, the agreement will not lessen the amount of water available this year for navigation on the Caldon Canal, nor will levels in the charity’s reservoirs be drawn down below an agreed minimum – protecting fish, wildlife and the natural environment.
Henriette Breukelaar, regional director for the Canal & River Trust, said: “Our main priority is to keep the canals filled with water for boats and to support the rich wildlife that lives in the canal network. Our teams are working tirelessly during this drought to use every drop we can.
“Even allowing for the fact that the channels feeding water from the Caldon Canal reservoirs into the canal network will run at capacity for the remainder of this summer, there would be some spare capacity at the end of the season. It is the ‘left over’ excess water that is effectively being used.
“In return, Severn Trent will help our charity by investing in the resilience of our Caldon Canal reservoirs ensuring they are better able to keep the canals topped up in the years ahead.”
Colin Church, strategic resource engineering lead from Severn Trent, said: “In a proactive response to the driest spring and hottest summer on record, this partnership is a great example of how collaboration and innovation can deliver benefits for people, nature and infrastructure.
“This smart reallocation of water, together with vital infrastructure improvements at Knypersley and Rudyard reservoirs, will help strengthen the resilience of water supply across North Staffordshire and invests in the future of the canal network for years to come.”
