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Water and sewerage How Things Work in South Hams -


Where does the water from our taps come from and where does the wastewater go?


by Kate Cotton


We asked South West Water about the water journey in the South Hams…


Our drinking water The water in our household and business taps in Kingsbridge, Dart- mouth and Salcombe comes from Littlehempston Water Treatment Works, just outside Totnes. The raw water is taken mainly from the River Dart and then filtered and treated so it’s fit for human consumption. It’s then pumped through a vast


network of underground pipes (‘water mains’) to our kitchens and bathrooms.


A spokesperson for South


West Water said: “Littlehempston – known affectionately to staff as Little H – can also treat water from Burrator Reservoir, the River Tamar (via Gunnislake) and water from Roadford Reservoir, near Launceston.” Areas of the South Hams are also supplied by Avon Water Treatment Works, which treats water from Avon Reservoir. During the winter months, when


river levels are healthy, South West Water takes most of its water from rivers, with the reservoirs providing back-up supplies. The reservoirs come into use more in the drier months. The spokesperson added: “Initial-


ly we make use of the smaller, local reservoirs. When the storage level in these reservoirs drops to a certain level, we make use of the large, strategic reservoirs at Colliford, Roadford and Wimbleball. “The river and


reservoir systems are linked together by a network of pipes, which enable us to transfer water around the region. “By using the network of pipes


another. We are also able to pump water from rivers into our reser- voirs, rather than waiting for them to refill naturally.”


The river and


reservoir systems are linked together


by a network of pipes, which enable us to transfer water around the region.


“Upstream Thinking” The River Dart has been a key focus of South West Water’s award-winning environmental


programme “Upstream Thinking”, which focuses


we are able to move water around to balance dry periods in one part of our region with wetter periods in


on issues at the beginning of the water chain to lessen the need to treat the water at the end. The River Dart water comes


from the moor and flows through


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