According to the Stantec Report, Cambridgeshire is water stressed and already does not have enough water to support the existing community, let alone those proposed (some 40,000+ dwellings). We have a lower average rainfall than parts of Syria in the Middle East, for example. Our unique chalk streams (approximately 85% of the worlds’ 200 chalk streams are in the south of England) have crystal clear water, are a haven for otters, water voles and kingfishers, but are threatened by the ever increasing stress we are putting on them by ongoing development.
SCDC has noted that none of its proposed developments in the new Local Plan can go ahead unless more water is found. We support this position. Indeed, we would encourage all relevant authorities to go further and to ensure that water efficiency measures are introduced even for the existing developments to enable the aquifer to recover within a reasonable timescale.