Windermere tunnel proposal advances to further study

A coalition’s feasibility study has selected two tunnel-based options for a proposed £3.6 billion to £3.7 billion scheme to divert wastewater from Windermere, but the project has not been approved and still requires design work, assessments and regulatory decisions. The Only Rainwater into Windermere coalition published its study on October 21, after 15 months of work examining more than 70 possible approaches. Both options would use a tunnel to carry wastewater away from England’s largest natural lake for treatment. The study estimates that the scheme could connect about 12,800 people to public sewers for the first time. The proposed infrastructure includes up to 138 kilometres of new sewer lines, systems to intercept 35 kilometres of road runoff and 37 hectares of sustainable drainage. The coalition estimates the investment could generate about £7.5 billion in economic, environmental and social benefits. A related economic assessment puts the return at about £1.90 in benefits for each pound invested. The two options differ in where treated wastewater would go. One would discharge it into the River Leven; the other would send it to the Irish Sea near Ulverston. The coalition...