Thames Tideway Tunnel to bring £13Bn of environmental benefits

The Environment Minister Rory Stewart has announced that the new state-of-the-art Thames Tideway Tunnel is set to bring £13Bn worth of environmental benefits.

New figures reveal that the tunnel will bring a host of benefits including preventing millions of tonnes of sewage flowing into the river every year and improving water quality to provide protection to marine wildlife.

The Minister announced the figures as he visited the Lee Tunnel at Abbey Mills Pumping Station. The tunnel spans four miles beneath the London Borough of Newham, from Abbey Mills to Beckton and is London’s deepest ever tunnel. It will stop more than 16 million tonnes of sewage mixed with rainwater overflowing into the River Lee and Thames Tideway each year.

Mr Stewart said: “London is one of the most dynamic cities in the world and it is vital we have a river that is not filled with sewage every time there is heavy rainfall.

“This new research reveals the tunnel will bring up to £13bn worth of benefits to the capital’s natural environment. It will prevent millions of tonnes of sewage flowing into the river every year and it will mean we will have cleaner water for all to enjoy and improved water quality to better protect the Thames’ precious marine wildlife.

“The tunnel is an excellent example of world-leading British engineering at its best as well as boosting economic growth and generating thousands of jobs.”

Martin Baggs, Chief Executive Officer, Thames Water, said: “Beyond delivering the benefits of a cleaner river, a healthier environment and allowing us to harness more renewable energy from wastewater, this programme of investment will help many thousands of people forge a career in improving our Capital’s infrastructure.

“The Thames Tideway Tunnel project represents an excellent solution to cleaning up the river and great value for money for our customers.”

Work is due to commence on the tunnel in the summer of 2016.

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