Sewage Update from Thames Water

Letter from Bell Kelly, Thames Water, Customer Liaison

13th January 2021

Hello,

I know you and your community were affected by flooding from the very wet winter we experienced last year. This was because our foul water sewers were heavily impacted by groundwater, which caused them to flood.

As you know, we were unable to keep up with the flows by tankering alone and therefore we decided to deploy the filter unit, to help minimise further impact and protect Lambourn homes from flooding.

I am writing to you today to provide you with an update on the current situation in Lambourn. Since last winter, we’ve had teams on the ground using specialist equipment and cameras to survey the different sewers to identify the areas of infiltration into our network. This continued after the tankers left, and we’ve now surveyed over 2km of sewers. Off the back of these surveys some repair work has since been completed which includes sewer lining in Foxbury and Tubbs Farm Close. Please be assured, we continue to review the evidence we have collated to understand where we are best to direct our attentions next.

Separate to this, we’ve continued to work with the local flood forum as a multi-agency approach to the ground/ surface water we are experiencing. We have also met with residents and the Council to understand the flooding better and work together towards a solution.

What we’re doing today

You may have noticed we have deployed our mobile filter unit along a footpath off Newbury Street in preparation for the increasing ground water levels which we have been seeing. We continue to monitor these levels so that we can act immediately and to turn the unit on when we feel they are having an impact on our sewer network. Following our monitoring, this has indicated this may need to be turned on within the next few weeks.

As before, this filter unit will run 24 hours a day, a pump will feed the dirty water into the unit so it can be filtered and then safely discharged to the water course. By installing this unit, we hope we’ll be able to minimise the need for tankers in the village and therefore reducing disruption for you.

Please be assured, we will be regularly monitoring the water course to check for any impact. Should there be any, we would expect it to remain within the immediate vicinity of where the filter unit discharges to. 

We know the previous year must have been an unpleasant and distressing time for your local community and the concerns you may have going into this next wet period. We’re grateful for your continued patience and understanding at this time.

How this will affect you

We’d like to reassure you that your drinking water and your wastewater services will not be affected – you’ll be able to use water and flush your toilet as normal.

We’re conscious the filtering unit may be noisy, especially at night-time, and we thank you again for your support at this time.

Why we’re still working during Coronavirus

As an essential service, we’re dedicated to keeping our water and wastewater services running smoothly. Delaying routine repairs and maintenance can increase the risk of more serious issues such as burst pipes. This would result in greater interruptions and problems for customers, at this already difficult time.

The safety and wellbeing of our customers and our staff is of the utmost importance to us. Our teams are constantly adapting to follow the latest government advice to keep themselves and others safe, while ensuring we deliver our critical services. We are rescheduling non-essential work on customers’ boundaries and are happy to consider any other requests that give peace of mind.

We’re here to help

If you have any questions, please call our 24-hour customer centre on 0800 316 9800 quoting your address and reference number BB974959.

Yours faithfully,

Bell Kelly – Customer Liaison
Thames Valley Customer Field Services