Torbay aims to improve water quality ahead of EU standards

Works have started on the preparations needed before the delivery of a new water quality project that aims to improve bathing water at Torbay's beaches. The £5 million project will be made up of several different schemes that will help to improve the quality of bathing water at the popular Devon tourist area.

South West Water engineers are to start surveying the area in order to map out underground utility apparatus and ground levels. They will also begin to sink boreholes in order to ascertain the condition of the ground throughout the area. 

These surveys will better enable South West Water to accurately design the individual projects, in order to ensure they are delivered correctly. Once the projects have been implemented, they should help the Torbay area reach the stringent water quality standards that have been set by the European Union. The revised Bathing Water Directive from the EU comes into force in 2015 and means that beaches much reach much higher standards of quality.

Ian Lake, programme manager for South West Water, said: "Last year, South West Water announced it would be spending up to £20 million on a number of projects to further improve bathing water quality at key beaches including Torbay, where we will be investing around £5 million."

Currently the proposals for the water quality project are being developed and the latest surveys will enable the creation of more detailed plans to better serve the area, continued Mr Lake. A few different engineering solutions are being explored for a number of different areas. These could include making improvements to combined sewer overflows and increasing the capacity of storm water storage in the sewer network. It is hoped that the improvements will reduce the number of discharges from the network during wet conditions. 

 "It will take some time to analyse all the data and come up with final proposals but we will be working closely with Torbay Council to ensure that any future work we do has the least possible impact on the local community, while ensuring that the people of Torbay continue to enjoy the benefits of top-quality bathing water for many years to come," added Mr Lake.