£4.6m project begins in Keighley to reduce storm discharges

Yorkshire Water has started work to reduce discharges from a storm overflow on Bradford Road in Keighley, Bradford, as it continues its work to improve the health of rivers in the region. 

The £4.6m project will include the construction of a new 793m3 underground storage tank in green space next to the overflow car park of East Riddlesden Hall, which will hold excess wastewater flows during periods of heavy or prolonged rainfall. The tank will be 10m deep, with a 12.5m diameter, and will be able to hold 793,000 litres of wastewater.  

Increasing storage in the network will slow the flow of rainfall and wastewater, reducing the number of discharges from the storm overflow into the watercourse – a tributary of the river Aire. Once completed, the project is expected to reduce the number of discharges into the watercourse by 85%. 

Lumi Ajayi, project manager at Yorkshire Water, said: “We are committed to reducing storm overflow discharges across the region, and the Bradford Rd project is part of a wider £180m programme to do so before April 2025. It will hold excess wastewater flows that come through the sewer network during heavy or prolonged rainfall. It will then pump the stored water back into the network for full treatment once the rainfall event has passed. 

“Looking forward, we are planning our largest ever environmental investment between 2025 and 2030, which includes £1bn to further reduce the impact of overflows on our watercourses.” 

The work, which is being carried out by Sapphire Utilities, is expected to be completed in early 2025. Once construction of the tank is completed, the green space will be reinstated. 

Yorkshire Water is working on additional underground storage projects around Bradford, in Ravenscliffe and on Dick Lane in Tyersal. Both projects are already underway.