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58-481: Essex and Suffolk Water is a water supply company in the United Kingdom . It operates in two geographically distinct areas, one serving parts of Norfolk and Suffolk , and the other serving parts of Essex and Greater London . The total population served is 1.8 million. Essex and Suffolk is a 'water only' supplier, with sewerage services provided by Anglian Water and Thames Water within its areas of supply. It

116-517: A puddle clay core was built across the north-east edge of the site, and a new 9-mile (14 km) pipeline was built from the Langford pumping station to supply the reservoir. The main contractors for the project were W&C French, and it took around five years to complete, with the treatment works beginning production in August 1956. The formal opening took place over a year later, when Henry Brooke , MP ,

174-542: A 28-inch (71 cm) cast iron pipe to Southend. The pipe crossed below the River Crouch at Hullbridge , where shafts were built on either side of the river, and a tunnel was constructed between them. The water main is formed of twin steel tubes within the tunnel. The Oakwood storage reservoir was constructed in Bramble Crescent, Hadleigh (51°33'53.3"N 0°37'43.4"E). This was supplied with water from Langford, firstly by

232-612: A council chamber and committee rooms. A new County Hall was built between 1929 and 1939 between Market Road, Threadneedle Street and Duke Street in Chelmsford, adjoining the 1909 office block. The new County Hall included a council chamber, which was formally opened on 23 September 1938. The council's London premises at Finsbury Square were destroyed in the Blitz during the Second World War . Further extensions were added to County Hall in

290-479: A lake at Bunkers Hill, Lound . From there it was pumped through a 5-mile (8.0 km) pipeline to a covered reservoir located to the north of the town. Both the company and the Great Yarmouth company were finding that the supplies were inadequate for the populations of the two towns, particularly as there was a large seasonal tourist trade, and in 1906, they attempted to get authorisation for extracting water from

348-701: A lengthy tendering process, work began in January 2010 on a project costed at £150 million, to increase the capacity of the reservoir by 58 per cent, and to upgrade the capacity of the Ely-Ouse Essex Transfer Scheme. The clay core of the main dam was raised by 9.5 feet (2.9 m), to allow the water level to be raised by 10.5 feet (3.2 m), increasing the surface area of the reservoir from 1.8 square miles (4.7 km) to 2.5 square miles (6.5 km). The original pumping station which pumped water to Layer de la Haye treatment works would have been submerged by

406-577: A physio-chemical process, was used to produce more water than it normally does, resulting in the water level in Hanningfield Reservoir becoming very low. To prevent the problem re-occurring in the future, Essex and Suffolk Water applied for permission to construct a 12.4-mile (20 km) pipeline from Layer de la Haye to Langford Treatment Works, which like Hanningfield used physio-chemical processing. The pipeline will deliver up to 11 million imperial gallons (50 Ml) per day to Langford, which

464-610: A private undertaking constructed a well in Milton Road. A pumping station pumped the water to a reservoir on Cambridge Road. In 1871, the Southend Waterworks Company Limited was formed, and bought the works. The company became a statutory undertaker in 1879, which restricted the amount of money they could borrow, the profits they could retain and the dividend payable to shareholders, but gave them powers to lay pipes beneath public streets and on private land. By 1924,

522-703: A scheme to extract water from the River Blackwater , the River Chelmer and its tributary, the River Ter . An Act of Parliament was obtained in August 1924, to enable construction of Langford Works, to the west of Maldon . The project involved the construction of intakes on the Chelmer and Ter, so that water from either or both could be fed into a concrete pipeline which was 33 inches (84 cm) in diameter and 2.5 miles (4.0 km) long. The water flowed by gravity along

580-551: A water treatment works at Langham with an intake from the River Stour . Treated water was pumped from the works to Tiptree works, and was pumped from there to a reservoir at Danbury . It then flowed by gravity to another storage reservoir at Herongate and then into the distribution network. One condition of the Act was that the company had to supply water to other local authorities which were outside their original supply area. Although

638-468: Is at the service of other industries, e.g. of the food sector which produces beverages such as bottled water. There are a variety of organizational structures for the water industry, with countries usually having one dominant traditional structure, which usually changes only gradually over time. Water quality standards and environmental standards relating to wastewater are usually set by national bodies. Using available data only, and during 2009 - 2010,

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696-777: Is part of the Northumbrian Water Group . The South Essex Waterworks Company and the Southend Waterworks Company merged to form the Essex Water Company in 1970. In 1994 the Essex Water Company merged with Suffolk Water Company to form Essex and Suffolk Water. Since 2000 it has been part of Northumbrian Water , but continues to trade under the Essex and Suffolk Water name in the area. The Southend Waterworks Company had its origins in Southend-on-Sea in 1865 when

754-648: Is taken from the raw water inlet to Layer de la Haye works, and will flow along the pipe by gravity. Installation of the pipes began in February 2024, and is expected to be completed by March 2025, although work to carry the pipeline beneath the River Chelmer and the Langford Cut commenced in September 2023. The company supplies water to an area of 1,105 square miles (2,861 km) in southeast Norfolk, east Suffolk, Essex and

812-673: Is the county council that governs the non-metropolitan county of Essex in England . It has 75 councillors, elected from 70 divisions, and has been under Conservative majority control since 2001. The council meets at County Hall in the centre of Chelmsford . It is a member of the East of England Local Government Association . Elected county councils were created under the Local Government Act 1888 , taking over many administrative functions that had previously been performed by magistrates at

870-656: The Essex County Fire and Rescue Service . At the 2011 census Essex County Council served a population of 1,393,600, making it one of the largest local authorities in England. County council functions include social care, transport, education and many others. The council has had a Conservative majority since 2001. Political control of the county council since the reforms of the Local Government Act 1972 took effect on 1 April 1974 has been as follows: The leaders of

928-563: The Essex Wildlife Trust , and work on the B1026 causeway, which crossed the reservoir at a height where it would be below the level of the new water surface. With the capacity of the reservoir increased from 5,700 to 9,000 million imperial gallons (26,000 to 41,000 Ml), two new pipelines were constructed, to improve the transfer of water from the Ouse. The Ely Ouse to Essex Transfer Scheme

986-519: The Minister of Housing and Local Government , performed the ceremony in September 1957. The total cost of the project was £6 million, and when full, the reservoir can hold 5,736 million imperial gallons (26,075 Ml). If supplies around 33 million imperial gallons (150 Ml) of treated water per day, although the maximum throughput of the works is 49 million imperial gallons (225 Ml) per day. Water levels fluctuate seasonally, and during

1044-529: The Quarter Sessions . The first elections were held in January 1889, and the council formally came into being on 1 April 1889. The council held its first official meeting on 2 April 1889 at the Shire Hall in Chelmsford. The first chairman of the council was Andrew Johnston of Woodford , a Liberal , who held the post for 27 years until he stood down in 1916. The area governed by the county council (called

1102-803: The River Bure . The bill faced a rough passage through Parliament, as there were objections to parts of it from Norfolk County Council , the Great Yarmouth Corporation, the Great Yarmouth Court Commissioners, the London Drainage Commissioners, the Ecclesiastical Commissioners for England, and some private individuals. The chief concerns were that removing water from the Bure would impede navigation, and that

1160-519: The River Thames . Water was obtained from boreholes sunk into the chalk aquifer underlying the area, but by the time of the First World War , these supplies were not sufficient to meet the demand for water, and so the company looked further afield. Following the failure of the joint scheme with Southend Waterworks Company, they obtained an Act of Parliament in 1928 for a revised scheme which included

1218-460: The " administrative county " until 1974) excluded county boroughs , which were towns considered large enough to provide their own county-level services. When the county council was established in 1889 there was one county borough within the wider county of Essex, at West Ham . Other county boroughs were subsequently created, removing them from the administrative county, being Southend-on-Sea in 1914 and East Ham in 1915. The administrative county

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1276-450: The 1950s and 1960s, particularly along Market Road. Essex County Council operates a Youth Assembly, comprising 75 members aged between 11 and 19 who aim to represent young people across Essex. The initiative seeks to engage younger people in the county, with the youth councillors working with schools and youth centres to improve youth services in Essex and help voice concerns of younger people. The Youth Assembly also sends representatives to

1334-425: The 28-inch main and later by an additional 32-inch main. Oakwood (elevation 65 metres) was the main storage reservoir supplying treated water to Southend by gravity. Additional storage reservoirs were added at Oakwood, increasing the capacity to 17 million gallons (77.2 Ml). The engines were normally worked in pairs, and a pair could deliver 8 million imperial gallons (36 Ml) per day. In August 1927, water from

1392-807: The Abberton and Hanningfield reservoirs. At the northern end, the Cut Off Channel carries the headwaters of the River Lark , the River Little Ouse and the River Wissey to the Great Ouse at Denver Sluice, when those rivers are in flood. An intake was constructed at Blackdyke, close to the Little Ouse, and a tunnel carries the water to a pumping station at Kennett . From there a 6.0-foot (1.83 m) pipeline carries

1450-591: The Chairman of Essex County Council , switched on the new pumps. In the late 1960s, construction of a new treatment works next to the storage reservoirs began. The works cost £1.5 million, and were opened on 30 June 1970. They can produce 12 million imperial gallons (55 Ml) of treated water per day. Earlier that year, the Essex Water Order was passed by Parliament, and on 1 April Southend Waterworks Company amalgamated with South Essex Waterworks Company to become

1508-513: The Chelmer and the Witham sewage treatment works on the Blackwater was piped to new outfalls below the intakes. When built, the Langford pumping station contained two triple-expansion steam engines, with room for a third, which was fitted in 1931. There were used in pairs, and each drove a low lift pump to transfer water to the treatment works, and a high lift pump to take treated water and pump it along

1566-437: The Chelmer started to be used, and between then and 1945, 96 per cent of the water supplied by Southend Waterworks came from Langford. The wells and boreholes were maintained, to provide a backup supply when necessary. In 1960, work began on replacing the steam engines at Langford pumping station with semi-automatic electric pumps. The project cost £260,000, and was formally inaugurated on 31 October 1963, when Sir George Chaplin,

1624-454: The Essex Water Company. Negotiations between Maldon District Council, Essex and Suffolk Water and other interested parties in 1996 resulted in the Langford pumping station and its one remaining engine, dating from 1931, becoming the fledgling Museum of Power . The South Essex Waterworks Company was formed in 1861, and supplied drinking water to an area of 103 square miles (270 km) stretching from Grays to East Ham and from Brentwood to

1682-598: The Langham works could supply 12 million imperial gallons (55 Ml) per day, and came online in 1932, they estimated that they would still be facing a shortage by the end of the decade. The company obtained another Act of Parliament in 1935 for a second abstraction point on the Stour. This was located at Stratford St. Mary , about 1.5 miles (2.4 km) downstream from the Langham intake. A pumping station pumped up to 35 million imperial gallons (160 Ml) of water per day to

1740-754: The London boroughs of Barking and Dagenham , Havering and Redbridge in Greater London. The total population served is 1.8 million, through over 735,000 domestic connections and over 47,000 non-household connections. Essex and Suffolk is a 'water only' supplier, with sewerage services supplied by Anglian Water (Essex, Norfolk, Suffolk and part of Upminster) and Thames Water (Greater London and part of Brentwood). Water industry The water industry includes water engineering , operations, water and wastewater plant construction, equipment supply and specialist water treatment chemicals, among others. The water industry

1798-600: The Ormesby Waterworks was opened. Public water supply in Lowestoft also began in 1853, with the creation of the Lowestoft Water, Gas and Market Company. They retained this name until 1897, when they became the Lowestoft Water and Gas Company. The company had an authorised capital of £25,000, and bought the gas works for £5,000. Water was supplied to a tower at Kirkley from a well at Middle West Field, and subsequently from

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1856-498: The River Bure to the works. Parts of the works date from the 1930s, and others from the 1950s, but a major upgrade was completed in 2005, to enhance the treatment of water from the broads, which is affected by algal bloom for around a quarter of each year. To meet long-term supply requirements, the company looked at several options, and in 1997 settled on expanding the capacity of Abberton Reservoir. After ten years of design work and

1914-477: The company bought most of the Trinity Broads in 1995. These are isolated from the River Bure by a narrow channel, and have been further protected by the installation of a sluice gate. They were designated as a Site of Special Scientific Interest in 1998. Osmesby Works is situated by the side of Ormesby Broad, and can treat water from the broads. A second source of water is pumped some 18 miles (29 km) from

1972-460: The company were supplying an area of 160 square miles (410 km) bounded on the south by the River Thames , on the north by the River Crouch , and stretching westwards to the outskirts of Shenfield . As the volume of water required increased, additional wells were sunk, until there were 36 wells or boreholes in operation. They penetrated a layer of London clay near the surface, and continued into

2030-578: The construction of Hanningfield Reservoir and the Ely-Ouse to Essex Transfer Scheme. The construction of Hanningfield Reservoir , which was authorised by the Hanningfield Water Order 1950, and began in 1951, was a joint venture between the two companies. It was built in the Sandon Valley, to the north of Wickford , and covered the hamlet of Peasdown. A 1.25-mile (2.01 km) mass earth dam with

2088-426: The council since 1996 have been: Following the 2021 election and subsequent by-elections up to July 2024, the composition of the council was as follows: The Canvey Island Independents, Green, Loughton Residents, Residents for Uttlesford, Rochford Residents and the three independent councillors all sit together as the "Non-aligned Group". The next election is due in 2025. Since the last boundary changes in 2005

2146-519: The council has comprised 75 councillors representing 70 electoral divisions , each electing one or two councillors. Elections are held every four years. The council is based at County Hall on Market Road in Chelmsford . From its creation in 1889 until 1938 the council met four times a year at Shire Hall in Chelmsford but met at other times at premises near Liverpool Street station in London , which

2204-554: The end of hostilities. The project cost £500,000. Many of the construction workers came from Durham , and some stayed on to run the works, including Stanley Aldridge, who had been the engineer, and became the general manager of the Layer works. Although the Southend Waterworks Company and the South Essex Waterworks Company did not formally unite until 1970, they co-operated on two major projects prior to that date. These were

2262-605: The new Abberton Reservoir , and a new treatment works was built at Layer de la Haye near its northern shore. Treated water was pumped to Tiptree, where it was blended with water from Langham. The pipeline from Stratford St. Mary was 11 miles (18 km) long, while Abberton Reservoir covers an area of 1,210 acres (4.9 km) and lies in the valley of the Layer Brook. When full, it could hold 5,700 million imperial gallons (26,000 Ml). Layer treatment works could process 27 million imperial gallons (125 Ml) per day, and

2320-421: The new water levels, and so had to be demolished and rebuilt at a higher level. In order to keep the system operational while this was being done, a temporary pumping station was built on the shore of the reservoir. The new station can deliver 51 million imperial gallons (231 Ml) of raw water per day to the works. Other enhancements at the reservoir site included the construction of a new visitor centre for

2378-433: The pipeline to two sedimentation reservoirs each covering 10.1 acres (4.1 ha) and capable of holding 30 million imperial gallons (140 Ml). Water from the Blackwater intake at Langford Mill is pumped to the sedimentation reservoirs. From there the water flows by gravity to the Langford pumping station. In order to maintain the quality of the water, effluent discharged from the Chelmsford sewage treatment works on

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2436-674: The quality of the water would be poor, and unfit to supply as drinking water. However, the bill eventually became the Great Yarmouth Waterworks and Lowestoft Water and Gas Act 1907. The two companies amalgamated in 1962 to become the East Anglian Water Company. The merger was sanctioned by the East Anglian Water Order 1962, using the powers of the Water Act 1945 . By this time the Lowestoft Water and Gas Company

2494-430: The river, a new pumping station was constructed at Wormingford, to remove the water from the river and pump it to Abberton. A condition of the planning consent was that it should look like a traditional farm building, and so the walls are finished in black timber cladding, and the pitched roof is covered in clay tiles. Two surge vessels protect the pipeline, and are designed to look like grain silos. The pumping station pumps

2552-463: The road and the railway. The pipeline was then laid through the tunnel and grouted in. The entire project was completed in 2014. In 2016 and 2022, high temperatures and low rainfall resulted in poor water quality in Abberton Reservoir, and the biological treatment process at Layer de la Haye works could not produce the required volumes of water needed. Consequently, Hanningfield works, which uses

2610-471: The sands of the Lower London tertiary deposits below that, but the yields obtained were generally poor and gradually diminished over time. In 1921 the company started to look at extracting water from rivers, but failed to obtain parliamentary approval for a joint scheme with the South Essex Waterworks Company to obtain water from the River Stour on the border between Essex and Suffolk. They therefore developed

2668-478: The scheme was completed in 1971. The Great Yarmouth Waterworks Company was set up in 1853, authorised by the Great Yarmouth Waterworks Act 1853 . They built a waterworks at Ormesby Broad , from where water flowed by gravity into Great Yarmouth. Two steam engines raised the water up to some filter beds. The construction of the distribution network of pipes through the town was completed in 1855, when

2726-572: The system was designed to store water from winter rainfall for use in the summer months. Construction of the reservoir began in March 1936 and continued until the start of the Second World War in 1939. To pass under the River Colne , shafts were constructed on either side of the river, and a 12-foot (3.7 m) diameter tunnel was excavated between the shafts. The miners worked in compressed air, and twin pipes of 32-inch (81 cm) diameter were run through

2784-401: The ten largest water companies active globally were (largest first) : Veolia Environnement (France), Suez Environnement (France), ITT Corporation (US), United Utilities (UK), Severn Trent (UK), Thames Water (UK), American Water Works Company (US), GE Water (US), Kurita Water Industries (Japan), Nalco Water (US). Essex County Council Essex County Council

2842-413: The tunnel. The original pipeline consisted of bitumen-lined steel tubes, some 34 inches (86 cm) and some 36 inches (91 cm) in diameter. A second pipeline of 40-and-42-inch (102 and 107 cm) diameter pipes was subsequently installed. Filling of the reservoir began in 1939 and was completed by the end of 1940. Some minor commissioning work, including the Abberton pumping station, was delayed until

2900-610: The water for approximately 1.2 miles (2 km) to a break tank, from where it can flow by gravity to the reservoir. Most of the two pipelines were installed using cut and cover techniques, but the southern pipeline passes under the River Colne and beneath the A12 road and the East Coast railway to the west of Colchester . Twin shafts, 23 feet (7 m) in diameter and 66 feet (20 m) deep were excavated, and 490 feet (150 m) of 5-foot (1.5 m) diameter bored tunnel passed under both

2958-565: The water to Kirtling Green Outfall, where it enters Kirtling Brook, a tributary of the River Stour. Further down the Stour, some of the water is removed from the river by Wixoe pumping station. A 5.5-foot (1.68 m) diameter pipeline carries it to the Great Sampford outfall, where it is discharged into the River Pant, the name of the upper reaches of the River Blackwater . Construction of

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3016-505: The winter months, up to 53 million imperial gallons (240 Ml) per day are pumped into the reservoir via the Langford pipeline. In order to meet the rising demands for water faced by both companies, the next major project was the Ely-Ouse to Essex Transfer Scheme. Surplus water in the River Great Ouse , which would otherwise flow into the sea, was to be diverted via a series of channels, tunnels and pipelines to augment supplies to

3074-455: Was constructed from Kirtling Green in Suffolk, along the banks of the Stour to Wixoe, where the water discharges into the river. Most is 4-foot (1.2 m) in diameter, but this reduces to 3.3 feet (1.0 m) for the final 2.1 miles (3.4 km), where the gradient is steeper. It can deliver an additional 32 million imperial gallons (145 Ml) per day into the river system. Further down

3132-423: Was divided into 14 non-metropolitan districts at the same time, forming a lower tier of local government. In 1998 two of the districts, Southend-on-Sea and Thurrock were made unitary authorities , removing them from the area controlled by Essex County Council and transferring county-level services to those councils. For certain services, Essex, Southend and Thurrock co-operate through joint arrangements, such as

3190-523: Was further reduced in 1965 under the London Government Act 1963 which transferred Barking , Chingford , Dagenham , Hornchurch , Ilford , Leyton , Romford , Walthamstow , and Wanstead and Woodford to Greater London . The county was reconstituted in 1974 as a non-metropolitan county under the Local Government Act 1972 , which reformed the council's powers and responsibilities and saw it regain jurisdiction over Southend-on-Sea. The county

3248-559: Was known as the Lowestoft Water Company, as all gas companies had been nationalised in 1948 . A further change of name occurred on 18 January 1991, when it became Suffolk Water plc, and the new company was taken over by Essex Water on 8 April 1994, to become Essex and Suffolk Water. Both were owned by the French company Lyonnaise des Eaux-Dumez  [ fr ] at the time. In order to provide improved supplies to Great Yarmouth,

3306-485: Was licensed to allow 100 million imperial gallons (455 Ml) per day to be transferred, but the pumps at the Kennett pumping station could not deliver this volume, and the maximum permitted discharge into the river at Kirtling Green was 76 million imperial gallons (344 Ml) per day. As part of the upgrade, three additional pumps were installed at Kennett. Around 9.6 miles (15.4 km) of new underground pipeline

3364-430: Was more accessible by train to the majority of councillors. In 1909 the council built itself an office building on Duke Street in Chelmsford with a view to later extending the building to include a council chamber, before deciding against the extension on grounds of cost. The council's London premises moved several times, finally settling in 1931 at a building called Essex House at 26 Finsbury Square, which included offices,

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