More than 30km of a new water pipeline have been constructed in the first phase of a major investment to protect supplies for people in the North East.

Completion of engineering work on the £92.5m first phase of Northumbrian Water’s Project Pipeline: County Durham and Tees Valley represents a major milestone.

The current long-term investment project includes a total of 57km of new pipeline being constructed, connecting water treatment in Upper Teesdale with communities across the south of County Durham and across into the Tees Valley. This will add resilience to customers’ supplies and protect the quality of their drinking water.

The route was designed to maximise the use of gravity, minimising energy consumption by significantly reducing the reliance on pumping and reducing operating costs to help protect customers’ bills.

The first phase has involved the creation of a pipeline between Lartington Water Treatment Works and storage reservoirs at Whorley, near Gainford, and Shildon, which help to supply communities in County Durham.

This work was carried out by Northumbrian Water’s partner, Farrans Construction.

Along the 33km Phase 1 route, the engineers carried out 15 road crossings, including tunnelling beneath the A68 arterial road – one of three A roads crossed - to avoid impacting motorists.

Work also included tunnelling and laying dual pipes beneath the River Tees, passing between specially-constructed shafts created on either side of the river, to avoid impacting the watercourse and the wildlife and environment that relies upon it

Following completion of the construction phase, the team is working with landowners to finalise the reinstatement of the working areas, utilising the most appropriate timings to best restore the land to its previous state, or better.

To ensure the project also leaves a positive, lasting environmental benefit for the area, the water company has embarked on a 31-year project near Shildon, to enhance 15 hectares of low quality grassland, improving habitats that will benefit and attract more diverse wildlife.

James Dawes, Northumbrian Water’s project manager, said: “The first phase of Project Pipeline: County Durham and Tees Valley has been a massive undertaking.

“Our project team, and the blue pipes that have made up our pipeline, have become a familiar site for those who live or work across Teesdale, but in the coming months, the final visual signs of our work will continue to disappear from those areas, as the reinstatement work takes hold.

“Many of the pipes we have replaced were over 100 years old, and the route we have taken was designed not only to utilise the force of gravity to drive the flow of water, rather than energy consuming pumps, but also to avoid passing through Barnard Castle. So, we are not only creating a pipeline that reduces operational carbon consumption, we will ultimately be able to take some larger mains that pass through towns out of use, to minimise the risk of disruption to customers from things like bursts.”