£500M Thames Water desalination plant has provided seven days' water in 15 years
17 hours ago
- #drought-resilience
- #Thames-Water
- #water-supply
- London’s desalination plant has cost over £500m since 2010 but has only operated five times, producing 7.2bn litres of water.
- Thames Water plans a new £500m drought-resilience project (TDRA) to pump water from Teddington to Lee Valley reservoirs, replacing it with treated sewage effluent.
- The Beckton desalination plant is energy-intensive, produces brine, and discharges chemical byproducts into the Thames. It is currently offline for maintenance and upgrades.
- Thames Water admits the desalination plant has faced operational issues, including chemical leaks and system failures.
- The TDRA scheme aims to provide 75m litres/day during droughts but faces criticism for potentially harming river health.
- Critics argue Thames Water prioritizes short-term fixes over long-term solutions, risking environmental damage and public health.
- England faces a projected water shortfall of 5bn litres/day by 2055, with half in the southeast.