Utility restores 150-year-old reservoir

sultzer-reservoir

In October Anglian Water engineers concluded the inspection of the Sultzer Reservoir, one of two underground Victorian, treated water reservoirs originally built in 1871 at Lakenham, Norwich, which are still used by the utility. Between them they store 12 million litres of drinking water as it makes its way to customers’ taps.

Part of a routine maintenance programme, Anglian Water engineers inspected the structure of the reservoir. Over 500 underground treated water reservoirs are used by Anglian across the East of England. Unlike the large surface water reservoirs like Alton and Rutland, which store river water before treatment, underground storage reservoirs hold safe, clean drinking water and provide resilient storage at points across Anglian’s 38,000km network of water pipeline.

Paul Naylor, Regional Supply Manager for Anglian Water, said: “The Sultzer Reservoir is one of the oldest and most unique storage facilities we have in our region.  Despite its age, it continues to be an important part of the water network in Norwich and ensures the supply of drinking water to our customers in the city and surrounding areas.