MP congratulates Yorkshire Water on aiming for energy-neutral sewage treatment works

On the 13th June, our Chief Executive, Richard Flint welcomed the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, Rt Hon Ed Davey MP for a tour of our pioneering waste water treatment works, as we aim to generate all the energy used by the works on site.

At our Esholt site we are in the process of commissioning a new Bio-Energy facility which will turbo-charge the existing anaerobic digestion plant with a new innovative process, turning waste into energy and recycling essential nutrients back to agriculture.

On an inaugural visit to Esholt, the Secretary of State launched a new phase of the Government's Energy Entrepreneurs Fund and congratulated us on its brand new ATC Gasification technology which takes it a step closer to generating all of its energy needs.

Together with our technical partners Intervate, we have been awarded £1m from the most recent Energy Entrepreneurs Fund, which is for development of innovative projects in power generation. The grant will contribute to delivery of Advanced Thermal Conversion (ATC) Gasification, using sewage sludge and screenings as fuel to generate electricity.

The latest round of the Energy Entrepreneurs Fund amounts to £16m and will be awarded to 30 organisations.

Edward Davey, Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, said: “I was genuinely impressed by Yorkshire Water’s commitment to on-site electricity generation and I congratulate the company on their efforts.

“I want to see more and more businesses and communities generate their own energy, reduce their energy usage, cut carbon, and benefit from lower bills.

“It’s great to see first-hand how the £1m of funding that the Government was able to provide has had a successful impact. Today I’m calling for more exciting and innovative projects in Yorkshire, and across the country, to come forward and make their case for a share of £19m of funding for energy entrepreneurs.”

Our Chief executive Richard Flint said: “We’re serious about our commitment to reducing our energy usage and generating much more ourselves.

“We know that energy bills are rising and we need to take steps to protect our customers from the impact of these rises. Generating our own electricity is the logical way to do this and is part of our Blueprint for Yorkshire.

“Our comprehensive programme of investment has been bolstered by this £1m grant from the government.

“Last year we reduced our energy use by 3%, saving 8,700 tonnes of carbon – the same amount as produced if you drive around the world 1,500 times. We’re investing over £100m in energy, this includes seven new anaerobic digestion plants in the next two years, which will help bring down our energy bills and protect our customers from this cost.

“We are proud to have achieved the Carbon Trust Standard and are committed to taking the green agenda forward in Yorkshire. We aim to generate around 16% of our energy needs by the end of 2015."

The Calder Span is officially open!!

The new road and bridge which creates a safer access to Yorkshire Water’s Mitchell Laithes Waste Water Treatment Works in Dewsbury was opened today, exactly 85 years to the day from the opening of the original site.

The £6.2m bridge and road was officially named by local resident May Jennings who won the competition to name the bridge with her suggestion, The Calder Span.

And it turns out that Mrs Jennings has more than a passing interest in the site – her father-in-law was an engineer at the works, and her husband lived at a house on the site when she met him 62 years ago.

“It’s brilliant to see the new road and bridge go in, and when I found out I’d won the competition I just couldn’t believe it!” said Mrs Jennings of Long Lane, Earlsheaton.

“I told them my husband had got some things in the loft from the original opening on 12 June 1928 and a souvenir programme from the refurbishment in September 1957. It’s only right that we can open the road and bridge exactly 85 years later and I’m proud to have come up with the winning name.

“We won’t have trucks going down Long Lane any more thanks to this new road and I think that’s great.”

The project to build the new access road and 161 metre bridge has taken 18 months two years to complete and was ten years in the planning. Constructed by Morgan Sindall Grontmij, it is the first bridge the water company has ever commissioned.

Our project manager Simon Balding said: “We’ve done a lot of work at Mitchell Laithes in the past few years which means better water quality in the river but also meant extra traffic was coming to the site.

“The new, more suitable access should make it safer for all concerned and we’re delighted that the person who came up with the name we chose has such a close connection to the site.”

Mitchell Laithes is the fifth biggest waste water treatment works in Yorkshire and treats sewage and waste from more than 500,000 homes and businesses in Dewsbury and the Spen Valley.

We have invested £25m  to help Mitchell Laithes treatment works meet the new stricter standards of the Freshwater Fisheries Directive by lowering ammonia levels in its discharge. This has led to water quality improvements in the river.

To see all the pictures taken from the official opening ceremony, visit our Flickr account

£123 million of Yorkshire Water profits reinvested between 2010 and 2015

Last month we published our preliminary announcement of results for the year ending 31 March 2013.

Commenting on the company’s results, Richard Flint, our Chief Executive said:

“These results reflect another solid year for the company, its customers and investors.

“The flexibility of the region’s water supply system ensured that we were able to minimise the impact of last year’s extreme weather events on our customers and the environment alike. We have kept operating costs under control, have significantly out-performed our leakage reduction targets and our focus on pollution prevention means we continue to make strong progress in this area."

Our customers benefitted from continuing investment in the region’s water supply system, with no restrictions being placed on their use of water supplies despite some 20 million customers in other parts of the UK being subject to hosepipe bans. The flexibility of the regional grid system ensured that public water supplies were unaffected and we were also able to utilise it to protect the environment.

During this Asset Management Period (ending in 2015), we have delivered innovative energy schemes and improvements to the water network, which will directly benefit our customers. We will have re-invested over £123m above and beyond the capital programme allowed for in customer prices at the last price review.

Looking ahead, we will be talking to customers and stakeholders in detail preparing for Ofwat’s PR14 price review process. This summer we are widening engagement with the region as a whole by carrying out our largest ever customer engagement exercise which begins on the 13th June. For more information about this and to have your say on what you would like the money from your bill payments to be invested in, visit https://blueprintforyorkshire.com/

The preliminary results and Chairman's announcement is available via www.yorkshirewater.com/reportswww.yorkshirewater.com/reports

£3.6 Million Of Permanent Improvements Underway At Goole's Carr Lane Pumping Station

Below is the full Press Release relating to the investment at Goole's Carr Lane Pumping Station


A £3.6 million project is underway to permanently increase the pumping capacity at Yorkshire Water's Carr Lane pumping station in Goole.

Two new storm assist pumps, which have a combined pumping capacity of 1400 litres a second, are being installed inside the plant, with the first of these already in place and currently undergoing rigorous testing.

The second of these will be installed later in the year, increasing the overall pumping capacity of the site by approximately 20%.

The two permanent pumps will replace the temporary ones which have been in place outside the plant since last September. These will be removed in phases, from the middle of May onwards, ensuring that the additional 20% pumping capacity is maintained at all times.

From September, work is also expected to begin on a second permanent underground storm main running 800 meters from the plant to the Humber Estuary.

This is expected to take 20 weeks to complete and will replace the temporary second storm main which was created last July.

Michael Ward, project manager for Yorkshire Water, said: "We promised to make permanent improvements to the plant's pumping capacity, and it's overall robustness, and that's exactly what we're doing through this £2 million project.

"The two additional storm assist pumps will boost the plant's overall pumping capacity by a fifth, whilst the introduction of a second permanent storm main will significantly boost the site's resilience and robustness.

"We'd like to thank local residents for all the patience they've shown so far, and reassure them we'll be doing everything we can to reduce disruption and noise whilst this vital improvement work is taking place."

The company has also confirmed that it's £275,000 study into the town's sewerage network is progressing well, with preliminary findings expected to be available to the public towards the end of the year.

The study is being carried out alongside East Riding of Yorkshire Council, who are currently investing £80,000 to understand how flood water moves on the surface and how Goole's drainage system interacts with surrounding agricultural land.

To build up a picture of just how Goole's sewer system responds under different weather conditions, Yorkshire Water has installed 85 flow monitors and more than a dozen depth gauges along its underground network.

The results and insights from this will help to accurately inform any potential future investment by all parties, ensuring any future improvements are made where they are most needed.

The company continues to fully support East Riding of Yorkshire Council with its report into the causes of flooding in Goole last July, with the report expected to be complete by mid-July.

For more information on Yorkshire Water's investment in Goole, visit www.yorkshirewater.com/goole

MP Steps Into Shoes Of Call Centre Workers At Yorkshire Water Visit

An MP sat with customer advisors and listened into calls at Yorkshire Water’s sister company and contact centre, Loop, today (Friday 3 May 2013).

MP for Pudsey, Stuart Andrew (Con) toured the contact centre, which is based in Thornbury and employs over 700 people, before listening into calls himself.

Mr Andrew has a particular interest in securing jobs in his constituency, especially for young people, and is delighted to be visiting a major employer.

“Loop has a reputation as a great place to work having won numerous awards and employs a large number of young people so I was keen to find out more about what they do and the important service they deliver.

“And there’s no better way of getting to know what’s going on than getting involved and doing the job for a short while,” says Mr Andrew.

Helen Philips, Chairman of Loop and Director of Customer Service and Networks for Yorkshire Water says: “It’s great that we have the opportunity to show Mr Andrew the exciting work that’s going on in his constituency.

“Loop employs more than 700 people so is a major force in the area and we’re keen to hear what he thinks about both our call centre and about the wider role we play in his constituency.”

Loop has won a number of major awards for being a great quality place to work, including recently being voted in the top 30 employers for working parents according to The Top Employers for Working Families and in the top 3 for working mothers.

The contact centre answers 32,000 calls a week from all over the county and deals with all contacts to Yorkshire Water, including calls about bills and from people reporting leaks.

Rallying round to help a local motor club

When a venue used by the organisers of an annual motoring event became unavailable they requested

Photo courtesy of Mr. Wayne Scurrah

 our assistance.

Ilkley and District Motor Club organise the Ilkley Jubilee Historic Rally for cars from the sixties and seventies and the event consists of a number of navigational and driving challenges in and around the scenic Yorkshire Dales. On the public roads the navigator has to guide their driver along the correct route, while on private property a number of driving tests are held to test the driver’s ability.

It is one of the driving test venues that has become unusable as the winter (and summer!) weather has made the condition of the venue unsuitable for the cars.

Clerk of the Course of the event Henry Carr ‘We are extremely grateful of the time and effort everyone at Yorkshire Water has been in helping us out and the new venue for the event will provide an excellent test for both the driver and the navigator’

The event has been organised by Ilkley and District Motor Club since 1991 and attracts a great variety of historic cars from the sixties and seventies. MG, Austin-Healey, Triumph, Mini-Cooper, Ford, Sunbeam, Alfa, Lancia, Volvo, Saab and Porsche are all usually well represented in the entry with the cars coming to Yorkshire for the weekend of the event from all parts of the UK to participate.

Our Catchment and Recreation Manager Geoff Lomas ‘We always look to help the local community with their leisure activities where we can and on this occasion we have been able to help a local motor club with this prestigious sporting event and as a result also give the local economy a boost which the event brings to the region ’

The event is on Sunday 21st April and is based at the Craven Cattle Market in Skipton where the cars will be on show from 08:00 and the first driving test starts at 08:45. More details on the event website www.jubilee-rally.org.

Hands Up gets off to a flyer

Last week saw the launch of our fantastic new volunteering initiative 'Hands Up' which was marked by the planting of a giant organic hand that will create a spectacular visual legacy for everyone to enjoy.

The giant 20 metre-long hand, made up of 3,000 flowers, was planted by 150 volunteers at RSPB Fairburn Ings and Selby and Ansty MP, Nigel Adams, together with our chief executive, Richard Flint, planted the first bulb on a day filled with free family fun.

Anne Reed, who co-ordinates our volunteering programme, reflected on the event: “We had a fantastic day and were really pleased with the number of people who turned up to plant a few bulbs and have fun with us.

“Volunteering is a very important part of what we do at Yorkshire Water and the Kelda Group, and all of our staff are empowered to volunteer in their local community.

“Our corporate vision is taking responsibility for the water environment for good, but we don’t just do that through supplying drinking water and taking care of sewage.

“It’s really important to us to give something back to the communities we operate in, and, while symbolic, the work we have done here will play an important part in supporting the biodiversity that already thrives at Fairburn Ings.”

'The Big Hand Plant' as we named it, will help increase the biodiversity of plants at the reserve. Native species such as cornflower, field forget-me-not, meadow cranesbill and field scabious plugs were planted as they are proven to attract bumblebees - a species in decline - and butterflies, moths and hoverflies, which will in turn act as food source for other species such as birds and bats.

Later in the year, seeds from the flowers will provide food for a range of other species like woodmice and birds.

As well as taking part in a first for Castleford, there was family fun and activities for everyone including face painting and balloon sculpting, as well as light refreshments and a free seedbomb and planting seedpaper stencil for everyone who turned up.

Nigel Adams, MP for Selby and Ainsty, said: "I'm delighted to support this new and exciting volunteering initiative, which will make a huge difference to communities, charities and the local environment

To see the pictures that were taken on the day, visit our Flickr account