Where does our water come from?

88% of our supply comes from surface water sources, via river intakes on the Hampshire Avon and the Dorset Stour. There are also two small lakes, which provide short term bankside storage.

The other 12% of our supply comes from groundwater sources, via boreholes which mainly supply the more rural parts of the water resource zone.

The two main rivers, the River Avon and River Stour, have high ‘base flows’ which allow us to abstract from these sources throughout the year. During the summer months we operate a stream support system on the River Allen, a tributary of the River Stour. We pump water from boreholes to help support river flows and this allows us to continue to abstract water for public supply in the area.

The surface water and groundwater systems are linked together by a network of pipes, which enable us to transfer water around the region.