Here are some case studies providing more detail on different areas of investment:
Environmental improvement schemes
We plan to change how we take water from some rivers, lakes and underground springs to look after the environment and protect the plants, fish and animals that live in it.
One area where we will be doing this is in West Cumbria, where we need to reduce the amount of water we take from Ennerdale Water to improve the environmental conditions in the River Ehen. To ensure we still have sufficient water to meet our customers' needs we will develop new groundwater sources near Egremont. At the same time we will extend our leakage reduction programme and promote water efficiency activities with our customers.
The £19 million we plan to invest in new groundwater sources will enable us to continue to supply water to Copeland and South Allerdale. The scheme also includes a new 3.6km pipeline to reinforce the pipe network between Hayborough and Crosby near Workington. This will help prevent customers experiencing low water pressure at times of peak demand.
Also in Cumbria, £8 million of investment at Ennerdale Water, Ben Gill, Helvellyn Gill, Dubbs Beck and on the River Yearl, will improve habitats for species such as salmon.
Another project will take place on the River Dee in Cheshire where we will improve how we take water from the river by installing screens to protect fish such as salmon and lamprey. £14 million will be spent at five locations along the river.
Hydropower generation
We have set ourselves the challenging target of halving our greenhouse gas emissions by 2035. To support this goal we will be investing £3 million by 2015 to install turbines which generate electricity by converting the energy of moving water at locations including the Peak District and the Lake District. The electricity that is generated will, as far as possible, be used to offset electricity which would otherwise be provided by the national grid. Surplus power will be exported to the national grid.
Securing water for Southport
Over the next five years we will invest £25 million to improve the reliability of water supplies and to meet increasing demand in Southport and the surrounding areas. We will construct a new water treatment works and provide additional groundwater sources which will increase the volume of water available to the area.
Over the course of the next 10 to 15 years we will further increase the available groundwater sources, and close a number of older water treatment works allowing us to centralise all treatment at the new works.
Pipeline cleaning
Large pipelines connect water treatment works to our water distribution network. Sometimes, as a result of the way the water was treated in the past, minute deposits of iron and manganese accumulate on the inside of the pipes and build up over the years. When disturbed, these deposits can discolour the clean water flowing through the pipe. We will invest £41 million to clean a number of these pipes, improving the quality of drinking water to over 350,000 customers.
The first pipeline to be cleaned is 3.2km long and supplies water to customers in the Macclesfield area. This will cost £1.5 million and will be completed in 2010. In 2011 we will clean the smaller pipes that connect to it.
We will also clean the Vyrnwy pipelines which transports water from Oswestry Water Treatment Works in Wales to over 900,000 customers in Cheshire and Merseyside. We have already improved the water treatment works at Oswestry to reduce the levels of these minerals in the water. There are three 80km pipes, each the equivalent of driving from Burnley to Liverpool, so it is expected to take ten years to complete and cost £175 million.
The West East Link pipeline
We are investing £125 million to build a new 55km water pipeline that will stretch across the region from Merseyside to Bury. The pipeline will take two years to construct and will supply enough water to fill 400 million glasses every day. The pipeline will safeguard water supplies when climate change and European legislation limits the amount of water we can take from rivers and lakes. More information about this project
Taste and smell improvement schemes
Our customers have told us that improvements to the taste and smell of drinking water is a priority for them. We will improve it for over 330,000 customers who have at times received water that has had an earthy or musty taste. This is from naturally occurring compounds in the water.
Customers in Rochdale, Littleborough and Whitworth will benefit from £3 million of investment at Watergrove Water Treatment Works to deal with this issue. The improvements will be completed by the end of 2012.
Lead improvement projects
We have worked with the Drinking Water Inspectorate to develop an integrated package of measures to reduce the risk to customers associated with lead. These measures include continuing improvements to the way we treat water and changes to the way we communicate about how customers can carry out risk assessments.
In the North West, the biggest risk of lead getting into drinking water is from old, corroded lead pipes. An estimated 40 per cent of properties have lead pipes. We will invest £12 million over the next five years to remove lead pipes from our water distribution network. This will help us to comply with a new higher standard for lead in drinking water that comes into force in 2013.
Flood reduction programme
Sewer flooding into a home has devastating consequences. It can be caused by several factors including existing sewers not being big enough to cope with increased population growth and more frequent instances of heavy rain. The properties in our region that are at risk of sewer flooding are on our sewer flooding risk register which we report to our regulator, Ofwat. We will implement a £140 million programme to alleviate flooding of customer properties on this register by enlarging sewers and/or building local underground tanks to store excess wastewater until the amount of it in the sewer returns to a normal level.
For customers whose flooding problems are not solved early in this programme, we will be offering measures such as installing porches, gates, flood barriers, watertight doors or sealing brickwork.
Just one example of this is in Salford where we will be working at 23 properties, 15 of which have flooded internally.
Sewer overflows
We have over 43,000km of sewers which take away wastewater for treatment before it is returned to rivers and the sea. Many of these sewers also collect rainwater which runs off roads and roofs. When they become full, usually as a result of wet weather, excess water is released into watercourses from 'combined sewer overflows'. This prevents it from backing up and flooding homes and gardens but can result in pollution getting into rivers and streams.
In the next five years we will invest over £500m to increase the capacity of these overflows which will keep more wastewater within the sewer network and reduce the number of times it is released into watercourses.
In Blackburn we will be working on 19 overflow points throughout the town centre. Work will also take place in Salford, Manchester, Tameside, Lancaster and Windermere.
Odour schemes
Odour from wastewater treatment works can be a problem for customers who live and work nearby. We will spend around £4.5 million as part of our ongoing programme to reduce odour and improve this situation for affected customers. This will fund investigation at the sites affected including computer modelling using prevailing wind conditions to identify the worst areas. Then, where possible we will either remove sources of odours or enhance the treatment of odours to improve the situation.
Improving the quality of water returned to the environment
Liverpool Wastewater Treatment Works serves 622,000 people by cleaning their wastewater before it is put into the River Mersey.
Back in 2000 we improved the treatment process at this works and will now invest a further £40 million to improve it even more. This means that the quality of the cleaned up water that is put back into the Mersey will be even better, which ensures a cleaner environment for the plants and animals that live there and for our customers to enjoy.
We will also invest £9 million to extend the pipe from the works that takes the cleaned up water into the river. This will dilute the water more and further reduce the impact on natural habitats in the river.