Tackling Cambridge’s water stress through a strategic approach to planning

Last summer Michael Gove announced plans to invest considerably in Cambridge as ‘Europe’s Silicon Valley’ including the intention to deliver up to 250,000 additional homes under the Government’s Cambridge 2040 vision. Further announcements have followed, including more recently the reduction in the number of homes (to 150,000) and the extension of the timeline (by 2050).

There is no doubt that investment in Cambridge is an astute economic move: already, the University alone has a net economic impact on the UK economy of nearly £30 billion annually - almost four times that of the Premier League. Investing in the University and wider Greater Cambridge ecosystem will have a significant beneficial impact on the overall economic health of the UK.

When the vision was announced, the local political response was somewhat tentative, with key delivery challenges invariably raised regarding infrastructure, sustainability - and specifically water supply.

The Cambridge Water supply area relies primarily on ground water. The Environment Agency has stated that any new housing development must avoid increasing abstraction levels and risking deterioration to the existing water bodies in the area and the Agency has already objected to a number of strategic planning applications on the grounds of water stress.

Progress on the emerging Greater Cambridge Local Plan has also been impacted, whilst clarity is gained on resolution of this issue - with the net result being that (both current and future) development is delayed and the housing shortage exacerbated. Recent announcements suggested that as many as 9,000 new homes on committed strategic sites are currently being blocked as a consequence.

In its recently published report The Case for Cambridge, the Government commits to resolving the problem, stating: “Our first priority is water scarcity, which is holding back development and risks causing environmental harm. It is vital that the city has the water supply it needs to support long-term growth, including a new reservoir in the Fens and a new pipeline to transfer water from nearby Grafham Water. We are also making a one-off intervention to support growth in the shorter-term by delivering water savings through improved water efficiency of appliances in existing buildings that can offset new homes and commercial space.”

The Government also promises to deliver a unique offsetting intervention (as set out in Addressing water scarcity in Greater Cambridge: update on government measures) having already established a Water Scarcity Group, in order to unlock the current blockage.

But while there has been some significant progress in terms of strategy, implementation is problematic.

In February, Cambridge Water issued its third draft Water Resources Management Plan (WRMP), the earlier iterations having been objected to by the Environment Agency. The 25 year strategy, as required, demonstrates how Cambridge Water will ensure the continued supply of safe clean water while protecting and improving the environment.

The plan’s targets include a reduction in leakage, a reduction in household consumption and universal metering.

The supply options include a short-term water transfer from Grafham Water (25 miles west of Cambridge); a proposed new Fens Reservoir near Chatteris (25 miles north of Cambridge), and reuse of effluent water which feeds into Cherry Hinton Reservoir in Cambridge. 

Coordinating water supply and new housing development is compromised by the different timescales for local plans and WRMPs and the very long-term delivery of water infrastructure

Due to the significant infrastructure associated this (and projected costs of over £700m), the benefits will be staged: the Grafham Transfer in 2032, Fens Reservoir in 2036 and effluent re-use in 2041.

But will the Environment Agency support the latest WRMP, ultimately supporting future development before the planned supply options are fully in place? A phased approach, balancing longer-term growth with delivery of the proposed supply infrastructure is probably necessary. 

Funding for infrastructure projects is controlled by OFWAT and is reviewed only on a five-year basis, which makes it difficult for the water authorities and local authorities to change their planning

One of the Environment Agency’s key concerns is the way in which local authorities engage with water companies to plan development in line with available water resources. Coordinating water supply and new housing development is compromised by the different timescales for local plans and WRMPs and the very long-term delivery of water infrastructure such as new reservoirs. 

>>See also: A vision for 150,000 homes but no water to supply them. Does Gove’s Cambridge plan stand a chance?

Funding for infrastructure projects is controlled by OFWAT and is reviewed only on a five-year basis, which makes it difficult for the water authorities and local authorities (whose boundaries invariably do not align) to change their infrastructure planning to address significant changes in local circumstances.

The scale of infrastructure involved and the typically cross-boundary nature of the required longer-term solutions mean that a good case could be made for a truly strategic planning approach at national, or at least regional level.

Clearly the water scarcity situation must be resolved quickly both to unlock much-needed housing on sites already allocated in local plans and to allow future growth to be appropriately planned, whether in the form of a locally derived housing target or that suggested by the Government’s ambitious Cambridge 2040 vision. But for the strategy to be delivered, the tactical solutions must be identified and acted upon.

Matt Clarke is a director at Boyer