Shrewsbury Relief Road: Water pollution action required

A council is having to show how it intends to protect water supplies before its controversial relief road can be built.

On Thursday, Shropshire Council planning officers published a list of conditions that should be met if Shrewsbury's North West Relief Road was to go ahead.

The proposed route has planning permission but contamination fears have presented another hurdle.

It follows Environment Agency concerns.

The body had written to the council to say construction work on the huge infrastructure project could pose a risk to the town's drinking water supply.

The council will now need to provide a drainage management plan showing how it will prevent any water contamination.

Planning officers outlined 62 recommended conditions to move forward - the final step in the planning phase for a scheme given the green light by the council in October, albeit one still subject to department for transport approval.

The 4.3-mile (7km) road would run from Churncote Roundabout to Ellesmere Road Roundabout.

At a council planning meeting, it was said the local water supply was drawn from a borehole in the Shelton area of the town.

That source, according to the Environment Agency (EA), and supplier Severn Trent Water, could be impacted by works to realise the project, which runs over a "source protection zone" designed to safeguard water quality.

While Severn Trent Water said it did not object to the principle of the application, it had "specific concerns" over a potential for the scheme to pollute water supplies at Shelton.

It asked to see how construction works would be managed, along with a plan for how the runoff from drainage and spillages from the road would be dealt with.

"The piling work involved poses notable risks to our groundwater abstractions, and we must have absolute clarity now on how the applicant will manage these risks during construction," the company said.

Shropshire Council has been tasked with providing a drainage management plan showing how it will monitor and maintain the road to prevent contamination to the water supply.

An emergency response plan detailing how spillages from accidents will be managed has also been proposed.

The council has also been required to show how it plans to manage water quality during piling works for a proposed viaduct over the River Severn.

A planning committee will meet to discuss officers' recommendations on 15 February.

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