Affinity Water is to commence work on its next phase to install a new water main in St Albans.

The new water main will mean that water can be moved around the supply area more efficiently and will allow Affinity Water to keep more water in the ground to help the area’s globally rare chalk stream, the River Ver.

The next phase begins on Monday 21 March 2022 along Batchwood Drive and is expected to be completed in June 2022.

This follows the first phase of the works along Redbourn Road, which were completed in late December 2021.

It is expected that the work starting next week will result in disruption to local traffic, as temporary traffic lights will be in place as work starts, followed by a lane closure four weeks later.

The water company is setting up a stall in St Albans St Peters Street market on Wednesday 13 April to give residents a chance to learn more about the various phases of these significant and critical water mains work that will ultimately help to leave more water in globally rare chalk streams, such as the River Ver.

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In total, Affinity Water is investing £5.8 million in the new water main to provide the community with reliable and high-quality supply of water for many years to come and to protect the regions precious chalk streams.

Kevin Barton, Head of External Communications explained: "We know it can be frustrating when journey times are impacted by our works on our water network and we’ve worked hard to minimise the impact as much as possible. We have also set up a further community event so we can hear views and take feedback.

"The challenges of climate change, increases in population and demand for water means that some of our globally rare habitats, such as chalk streams are under threat. Chalk streams have been described as England’s 'Amazon' and are rarer than coral reefs or Bengal Tigers. This means we must do all we can to protect them and leave more water in the natural environment.

"The new water main, which represents an investment of £5.8 million, will allow us to move water around our supply area more efficiently so that we can reduce the amount we take from local chalk groundwater, that feeds into chalk streams like the River Ver. The new pipeline also means we will be able to continue to supply the local community with a reliable and high-quality supply of water for many years to come."