Southern Water has submitted an application to Southampton City Council for a ‘screening opinion’ for major proposed work at its Portswood Water Treatment Works off Kent Road in St Denys.

 

Work is required to “increase treatment capacity and improve process resilience at Portswood WTW through enhancement of the existing ASP [Advanced Sludge Plant] system” according to planning documents.

The plans include new and upgraded treatment and pumping infrastructure, electrical systems, access improvements, and the removal of existing redundant plant on the site.

Portswood councillor and cabinet member for environment and net zero John Savage (Lab) said he welcomed investment into waste water treatment, although he was concerned about the potential impact of the scheme.

“It’s an antique, that site, and it’s about time we got some decent investment,” he said.

“But it’s also a very cramped site, and it’s going to take an awful long time to do.”

According to the submitted documents, completion of proposed works isn’t anticipated until March 2030 – a period Savage suggested could be “a miserable four years or so for local residents and harmful to the environment”.

That meant not only the ecological environment, but also the environment for people who live near the site, he said.

He also stressed: “There is no mention of final UV treatment at the site” – a red line for many campaigning for a cleaner River Itchen, and suggested Southern Water should return to using the river for transportation via barge.

A screening application is a technical step to decide if a full environmental assessment is needed, rather than a process for gauging public opinion, although comments can be lodged via the council’s planning portal where further details of the proposals are available.

Satvir Kaur, MP for Southampton Test, said she had requested a meeting with the Southern Water CEO to find out what the company will do to mitigate any adverse impact on residents – a question we also put to Southern Water in a wider request for comment.

We’ll update this article if a response is received.

 Remembering when 'goods' were shipped by barge rather than road: the poo barge photographed in 2017