Planned Work

LOOKING AFTER THE ENVIRONMENT IS ONE OF OUR TOP PRIORITIES.

AS PART OF THIS COMMITMENT, WE ARE LOOKING TO INVEST OVER £3 MILLION TO IMPROVE THE PERFORMANCE OF OUR WASTEWATER TREATMENT AT SACRISTON. THIS ESSENTIAL WORK WILL HELP TO IMPROVE THE WATER QUALITY OF THE SOUTH BURN FOR THE BENEFIT OF PEOPLE, THE ENVIRONMENT AND WILDLIFE AND ENSURE THAT THE TREATMENT FACILITY CONTINUES TO SERVE THE COMMUNITY EFFECTIVELY.

The Sewage Treatment works serves Sacriston village with a population of over 6,000. The process comprises an inlet works (screening and grit removal), storm storage, primary settlement tanks biological filters, final settlement tanks and tertiary reed beds before discharge to South Burn.

As part of a wider Water Improvement National Environment Programme (WINEP), we are improving our treatment process to reduce the amount of phosphorus entering the receiving watercourse using chemical dosing to condition wastewater prior to traditional solids settlement. In addition, we will be introducing an alternative mechanical tertiary filtration package plant to ensure we can meet new permitted phosphorus limits.

The sewerage treatment works is located to the south of Sacriston accessed off Cross Lane. Given the location of the existing treatment works, we don’t expect significant disruption, however, there may be a noticeable increase in construction traffic accessing site via Cross Lane and B6312 during the construction period.

With funding secured and the design suitably developed, we expect work to begin on site starting Monday 8 January 2024 for up to 8 months. However, as with all construction projects, unexpected delays can sometimes occur. Typical working hours will be Monday to Friday, 8am to 5pm.

OUR COMMITMENT TO YOU

We invest hundreds of millions of pounds every year to maintain and upgrade our water and sewer assets so we can make sure we provide you with a top-quality product and safeguard our water and environment well into the future. Working in partnership to deliver water and sewerage services that meet the needs of current and future generations is one of our top priorities.

We recognise that, with construction work, noise and traffic disruption is difficult to avoid. Please be assured that we will do our best to reduce any inconvenience to you.

We want you to receive an outstanding service while we work in your community, and to help us deliver this, we have some guiding principles for our employees and partners.

When our work directly affects you, we will seek your views during the planning stage.

We will work with the local community and other relevant stakeholders to minimise the impact of what we need to do.

When working next to your home or business, we will do our best to contact you before the work begins and update you on progress and about any changes that may occur.

If we need to work on your land or in your property, we will return your land and/or property back to the condition they were immediately before the work began. We will agree this with you before we begin.

Our employees and partners will always act in a professional, courteous and helpful manner, keep their promises and ensure that any issues are resolved within a reasonable and agreed timescale.

Your opinion is important to us. We will ask for feedback on the performance of our employees and partners, as well as the impact our work has had on you and your community.

We will make sure work is carried out safely and that our working areas are secure and tidy.

We will respond quickly to any enquiries and investigate any concerns you may have about our work without delay.