(Image: Scottish Water)
WORK is set to start on the build of Scottish Water’s new £25 million water treatment facility in Peebles.
The new works on the outskirt of the Scottish Borders town will ensure the utility can continue to provide drinking water to customers in Peebles and Eddleston. The water treatment works (WTW) will be built in the field to the south of the existing works on Bonnington Road.
Preparatory work will get underway on December 7 when three trees, which Scottish Water said are in poor condition, will be removed for safety reasons and new site access will be made.
After this stage is complete, the water management firm said that its alliance partners, Amey and Ross-shire Engineering, will be on site in early 2021 to begin constructing the works – which are due for completion at the end of 2022.
The facility will be the first in Scotland to use a new high-quality ceramic membrane process, which provides a ‘very high quality’ water treatment, with the associated equipment taking up less room than other methods – meaning it is housed in a smaller building with less energy use and cost.
Scott Fraser, corporate affairs manager at Scottish Water, said, “This major investment will deliver long-term, sustainable WTW that meets the needs of present and future generations.
“We decided the best option to ensure continued high quality drinking water for our customers in in the area is to build a new works, rather than try and upgrade and the current works which have been in place for around 50 years.
“The area will continue to be supplied by raw water from Megget reservoir, the current source for drinking water.
“The new works has been designed to have as little visual and environmental impact as possible. We will be looking to include renewable energy sources at the site and to offset the delivery of materials and energy used to make the materials, to help Scottish Water reach its ambitious zero carbon target.”
