Our long-terms plans for Blea Water

Blea Water

We have an obligation[SK1.1] under the Water Industry Natural Environment Programme as agreed with the EA to remove the abstraction related infrastructure and restore Blea Water to a more natural state which will provide environmental benefits. A secondary weir downstream of Blea Water is also to be removed as part of the scheme to provide wider benefits.

Haweswater Forestry Management Works

The coniferous trees planted at Haweswater have stood for over 70 years. Owing to their exposed location, thin soils and size they are starting to succumb to windthrow. As trees blow over, they represent safety risks for users of the forest and also pose risks to the water quality in the reservoir. The conifer trees at Haweswater are predominantly a mixture of spruce and larch species. Larch is susceptible to a disease called phytophthora ramorum, which is prevalent throughout Cumbria. If this disease was detected at Haweswater, we would be issued with a Statutory Plant Health Notice from Forestry England, which would require us to either fell the larch trees, or kill them standing within 6-9 months. Furthermore, the coniferous woodlands have become areas with frequent antisocial behaviour in the summer months, and the prevalence of camping in these woods is increasing the risk of wildfire here.

Removal of these non-native conifers in a timely and planned manner will allow us to carefully control the operation, to both minimise disruption and risks the reservoir. It will also allow us to replace these trees with native species such as oak, birch and rowan which are better suited to the climatic conditions of the site (more resilient to the wind) and are more fitting in the landscape.

The track is required as there is no access for vehicles to The Rigg Plantation at the moment. Given the scale of tree removal a track will be required to undertake this works and remove the timber from site.

We have not abstracted water from Blea Water since 2014. Any water overflowing from Blea Water will ultimately end up downstream in Haweswater as it does currently and therefore not expected to be any change in the overall volume of water going into Haweswater.

Our Water Resources Management Plan (WRMP) sets out how much water we think our customers need, how much we have available and how we will meet that supply and demand.

Experts assess and model what will affect the demand for water in the future and take into account factors like population growth and the impact of climate change. Based on those assessments, which have also been subject to scrutiny by a DEFRA appointed planning inspector, Thirlmere's the right solution to meet the needs of the population now, and in the future.

You can view our updated draft Water Resources Management Plan which defines our strategy to meet demand from 2025 to 2085.

The abstraction licences from the Environment Agency for this site have been revoked for over 10 years and therefore we are not legally allowed to take water from this site. It would also be very unlikely that we would get permission to do so in the future as the site is not identified for use in our long-term Water Resource Management Plan.

We must demonstrate to the Environment Agency (EA) and Westmorland and Furness Council through the planning and consenting process that our assessment of flood risk is in accordance with National Planning Policy and that flood risk, to and from, the proposed project can be managed effectively and without increasing risk to others.

We will continue to engage with specialists and the Environment Agency and Westmorland and Furness Council to confirm the approach to flood modelling.

The purpose of the current weir was to maintain a water level for water supply purposes. The weir does not provide any flood risk benefit by the way of storage or attenuative effects. The water level is not drawn down lower than the weir crest to create storage. Once the weir is removed and a natural bed and outlet is formed, the outflow from Blea Water will be less peakier with a slower response to flood events than the existing arrangement, as the naturalised outlet will be less efficient at discharging flow into the watercourse downstream, effectively increasing the attenuative effect of the lake when compared to the current arrangement. We have observed the same impacts when assessing the impacts of weir removal on both Crummock Water and Ennerdale Water discontinuance schemes.

There are no sensitive receptors downstream of Blea Water and the flows from here ultimately feed into Haweswater where they are attenuated. The catchment for Blea Water is circa 3 Hectares whereas the overall catchment for Haweswater is circa 35 Hectares.

If we are not able to demonstrate that flood risk is not increased (including taking climate change into account), the project would be unable to obtain planning permission and other permissions / licences from the EA and Westmorland and Furness Council and therefore not progress into construction.

During any construction activity we carry out, safety is always of utmost importance. Therefore, access to several areas would be restricted, along with closures of some access routes during the work.

We'll look to minimise impacts and provide temporary alternative routes to areas not impacted by our work where possible and when it becomes safe, return the existing routes to users as quickly as possible.

The proposed track would be retained as a trail with a reduced width and would provide improved access along a further 1.2km of path to The Rigg for use going forward.

We will work closely with the Lake District National Park Public Rights of Way Officers as well as other interest groups.

Further details on any access restrictions will be provided as the scheme develops and updated on this website and shown in further engagement events.

During both the Blea Water works and the forestry management works, we will need to temporarily close or reduce the number of parking spaces at Mardale Head Car Park.

This is required for safety reasons, as the car park sits at the end of the highway providing access to the working areas.

As the schemes develop, we will be better able to confirm the extent and duration of any closures of the car park. We will look to minimise any closures as far as possible and place advance warning signage locally to advertise this on the approach to the car park.

Due to the sensitive nature of the surrounding land and lack of suitable available space it is not proposed to provide any replacement parking in the immediate vicinity.

We understand that the Haweswater Valley and Blea Water are a valued space and an important landscape for visitors and the surrounding communities. The lake, river and much of the surrounding catchment are designated for their unique and important habitat and species.

The purpose of the project scheme is to deliver long-term environmental benefits, which would include:

• Removing barriers to fish and eel movement
• Restoring natural flows and sediment transportation
• Improving river habitat quality
• More resilient and diverse woodlands

We're working with a range of partners, stakeholders and engaging with specialist ecological contractors to carry out surveys and assessments, the majority of which we will look to undertake this summer and this will help to inform the design and development of the Planning Application.

We're currently collating information on the construction impact at this site and, as our plans develop, this would be made available and updates provided at community drop-in sessions and on this dedicated webpage.

The key considerations will be:

• Public highway access available from the M6 junction 39 along designated B and C roads through the villages of Shap and Bampton Grange to Mardale Head Car Park
• Investigating the use of the United Utilities private Concrete Road which could avoid construction vehicles going through Shap and Bampton
• Maximum number of lorry movements 2 to 3 per day in relation to Blea Water
• Lorry movements in relation to the forestry works are still to be confirmed but would be more then in relation to Blea Water works
• Narrow single lane in places, but safe lorry access is possible
• Potential for closure of section of road from The Haweswater Hotel, especially in relation to forestry works to reduce disruption to the public and ensure safe access is provided
• A suitable compound location and associated helicopter landing pad will be required at Blea Water.
• The car park at Mardale Head will need to be closed for the duration of the forestry works and there is likely to be a restricted number of spaces available for the duration of the Blea Water scheme.

The scheme has now moved into the outline design phase, which will ultimately lead to submission of Environmental Impact Assessment Screening Opinions and subsequent Planning Application’s to the Lake District National Park Authority (LDNPA) as identified in the timeline above.

We have appointed consultants to undertake this work and, as we move through this phase of the project, we'll arrange further community drop-in sessions later in 2026 when we have further information available.

We hope you have found this information about our long-term plans helpful.

There will be further community drop-in sessions as the schemes develop and we will provide information on the timings of these sessions on this webpage, within the Parish Newsletter and via letter drops.

In the meantime, if you have any queries, please complete our feedback form.