AN innovative filtering unit is ready to be switched on for the first time in Aldbourne as part of Thames Water’s ongoing work to reduce the risk of sewer flooding.

The mobile sewage filter unit, which was set up on Oxford Street at the weekend, is one of ten purchased by Thames Water following the record wet winter two years ago. It is the second to be deployed by the company after one was set up in Cirencester last month.

It is designed to protect the environment by biologically filtering out the most harmful elements of sewage if, in extreme circumstances, sewers are overwhelmed and the excess water has to be diverted away from properties into water courses or fields.

The £20,000 unit is currently on standby as volumes in the sewer network are manageable, but with river levels on the up following last week’s rain Thames Water teams are on high alert.

Thames Water’s waste networks area manager for Wiltshire, Alex Saunders, said: “We know Aldbourne has suffered sewer flooding problems in the past so it’s somewhere we’ve been keeping a very close eye on.

"We hope we don’t need to put the filter into action but, should the worst happen, we’re ready to do all we can to protect customers and the environment.

“This proactive work is based on careful monitoring of our own information and that from organisations such as the Environment Agency and the Met Office, and enables us to put measures in place before flooding happens.

"Using the filter unit will be a last resort as we want to operate normally for as long as possible by pumping everything from the sewers away for treatment.”

Parish councillor Nick Josephy, who chairs Aldbourne Drainage Improvement Group, said: “Thames Water’s proactive approach to try and prevent the sewer flooding problems we’ve suffered in the past is very welcome.

"I hope it will not be necessary to put the filter unit into use but it’s certainly very reassuring to know that, should the weather take a turn for the worse, then it’s here and ready for action.”

During and after heavy rain, especially if groundwater levels are already high, pumps which send sewage to a treatment works can get overwhelmed by extreme volumes of water. Previously in these circumstances, with permission from the Environment Agency, sewage was diverted into watercourses or to fields to stop it flooding streets and homes.

This new equipment means, should the situation arise again, the most harmful elements in the sewage will be filtered out by the unit before the water enters the environment. It will stay in place for as long as there is a risk of flooding.