§ Mr. BeggsTo ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what future development is anticipated in the Sion Mills area up to 2030 that the wastewater treatment works due for completion in March 2006 will be designed to cater for. [186302]
§ Mr. SpellarThe Chief Executive of Water Services (Mrs. Katharine Bryan) has been asked to write to the hon. Member in response to this question.
Letter from Mrs. Katharine Bryan to Mr. Roy Beggs, dated September 2004:
You recently asked the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland a Parliamentary Question about anticipated future development in Sion Mills catered for in the design of the planned wastewater treatment works for the area. I have been asked to reply as Chief Executive of Water Service as the issue falls within my operational responsibility.
Water Service estimates that the existing wastewater treatment works at Sion Mills serves a population equivalent of some 3,100 taking account of both domestic and non-domestic properties. Water Service is proposing to undertake a major upgrade of the Works as it does not have capacity for dealing with significant additional flows.
The new Works will be designed to cater for a population equivalent of 3,700 by the year 2030. This has been assessed using established methodologies taking into account population growth and anticipated housing and commercial development. This projection does not take into account the recent proposal to develop the Herdman's Mills site in Sion Mills. This could have an impact on the required capacity of the new Works but the implications cannot be assessed at this stage. However, as the design of the Works is still at an early stage, it should be possible to allow for the impact of the proposals for the Herdman's Mills site at a later stage in the design.