Councillor criticises 'diabolical' Oxfordshire reservoir plan

Residents should be "more than concerned" by a proposal for a £1bn reservoir in Oxfordshire, a councillor has claimed.

Under plans the site near Abingdon could measure 7 sq km (4.3 sq miles) with embankments as high as 25m.

It is proposed by Water Resources South East (WRSE), a partnership of water companies in the region.

Lib Dem councillor Sally Povolotsky said the proposal is "diabolical".

Construction could start in 2028 and last for 10 years. A consultation, which includes other projects across the South East, launched on Monday and will last until mid-March.

Ms Povolotsky, the county councillor for Hendreds and Harwell, promised that the water companies have a "massive fight on [their] hands" should they decide the Oxfordshire reservoir is required.

She labelled the scheme a "vanity project" that would not be required if Thames Water fixed leaks to their infrastructure.

"This feels like the water companies are stitching us up," she added.

The possibility of a reservoir on the site has been floated since the 1990s to cope with increased demand.

One was formally proposed in 2006 but was rejected by the government in 2011 following a public inquiry. The proposal was revived again in 2018.

WRSE's Trevor Bishop said: "This is a consultation because if there's any new or different evidence, that's very much what we want.

"We talk to thousands of customers and they tell us they don't want their taps to run dry in 10 or 20 years. They want a better environment now and in the future."

A Thames Water spokesperson said: "We recognise there are local concerns about the potential development of a new reservoir, and want to continue our ongoing dialogue with stakeholders including councillors, MPs and the wider community to address these."

Follow BBC South on Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram. Send your story ideas to [email protected].