Langsett Water Treatment Works, Sheffield

Background:-
In common with most other reservoirs in the Pennines, the water treatment works at Langsett near Stocksbridge, South Yorkshire, had experienced a deterioration in water quality over the years due to the peaty nature of the surrounding hills.

To counteract this a new first stage treatment process called a Magnetic Ion Exchange (MIEX), designed to remove the slightly tinged peat colour from the raw water in Langsett reservoir prior to it being treated and sent out to supply customers, was installed.

HBPW led the civil and structural engineering design on behalf of Clugston who delivered the project for the Morgan Sindall and SWECO Joint Venture (MS2JV)

Challenge
Historically Langsett water treatment works received its raw water from the nearby reservoir and cleansed it using a Rapid Gravity Filter system (RGF). However, the efficiency of the RGF was gradually being reduced because of the increasingly peaty water, prompting the need for a MIEX.

“There were some early day challenges,” said the HBPW engineer behind the scheme, “in that restrictions on site meant that concrete had to be pumped in some considerable distance.”

Solution
MIEX processes have the ability to reduce the Dissolved Organic Carbon (DOC) in water which, in turn, reduces the formation of harmful Disinfection By-Products (DBPs) in the water treatment plant itself. This provides for much improved outcomes enabling the RGF system to, once again, achieve maximum efficiency. By working in tandem the MIEX and RGF now massively benefit the local population.

Outcome
Around 200,000 people in the Sheffield and Barnsley areas now have some of the cleanest drinking water in the UK, thanks to a new treatment facility that is using pioneering technology to bring even greater purity to South Yorkshire’s finest tipple. HBPW has played a key role in helping upgrade Sheffield’s drinking water for years to come.