Water quality measures feed into reservoir

State-of-the-art monitors are being installed on water courses feeding Scar House reservoir, to help monitor and improve water quality. The monitors are being installed on inlets to the reservoir across the Howstean catchment – which will enable further control over the time, volume and quality of the water feeding the reservoir.

The better the water quality is at source, the less energy it takes to process at the treatment works, reducing Yorkshire Water’s carbon footprint and supporting its net zero carbon ambition.

In addition to installing new water quality monitors, Yorkshire Water is adding four new maintenance engineers to the team looking after Scar House. They will be responsible for proactively maintaining assets on site and monitoring the new sensor technology.

Yorkshire Water’s product and process manager, Ted Rycroft, said: “Water coming out of customers taps will continue to be the high quality that it always has been – the key change here is that the water coming into the treatment works will be of higher quality, and therefore require less treatment.

“That helps us to keep operational emissions to a minimum, whilst maintaining our high standards of water quality.

“Work started to construct the reservoir 100 years ago and despite its age we’re continuing to add innovative new ways of working and managing water for the benefit of our customers.”

New recruit, Jack Snowden, said: “It’s really exciting to be looking after such an important asset and play a part in the next chapter of its history.”

Scar House Reservoir is the second of the three reservoirs in Upper Nidderdale, the others being Angram Reservoir and Gouthwaite Reservoir.

As well as providing water, between them they attract around 150,000 visitors a year, to enjoy the scenery and walks.

Angram and Scar House were built to supply water to the Bradford area.

Yorkshire Water provides over five million customers.