£3.7bn plan for giant 12-mile tunnel to stop sewage pouring into Windermere could add £3 a month to bills
Louise Beardmore, whose company wants to build a £3.6bn tunnel to divert sewage away from Windermere, calls the proposed scheme a "100 year solution" for England's largest lake.Lake Windermere, where raw sewage and treated effluent blamed for turning parts of the water green each summer could be redirected through up to 86 miles of new sewers.
Raw sewage and treated effluent from United Utilities continue to flow into England's largest lake, with campaigners blaming the company for the toxic algal blooms that have turned the water green. The proposed tunnel would carry waste to a new treatment facility, connecting 12,800 residents to the public sewer network who currently lack that access. Construction could begin in 2030 and last up to seven years. Whether the project goes ahead now falls to ministers to decide.
United Utilities chief executive Louise Beardmore calls it a '100 year solution for this lake'.
Save Windermere founder Matt Staniek warned: 'This is a plan on a piece of paper.'
Former environment minister Steve Reed pledged in March last year to end all discharges into the lake.
