Water Supply
The Councils’ Integrated Water Management Plan indicates that current levels of abstraction from the chalk aquifer used to supply the Greater Cambridge area are unsustainable. As such the study outlines that there is a need for new strategic water supply infrastructure in order to provide for the longer term needs of the area if development is to be delivered beyond those levels already agreed as part of current Water Resource Management Plans (WRMP). The Councils highlight that a new WRMP is being prepared to cove the period to 2050 and it will be important that the proposed level of growth set pout in this plan can be accommodated moving forward. Water companies have a statutory duty to develop and maintain an efficient and economical system of water supply in their areas and the Councils and relevant water companies need to ensure that the necessary resources and infrastructure are in place to secure the necessary supply required to meet the demands of not only Greater Cambridge, but all those areas affected.
If the necessary infrastructure is not in place a stepped requirement may be necessary but should be seen as a last resort. It will also be necessary, as set out in paragraph 68-021 of PPG, that the Councils will need to ensure that planned housing requirements can still be met within the plan period and does not become continually delayed.