Borehole development secures water supply for a Bedfordshire brewery

The proposed new borehole was situated within an environmentally sensitive area where there is restricted water available for licensing. Concerns from the Environment Agency and local wildlife groups meant that a high level of regulatory engagement was required to determine the viability of the project and collect the necessary data. Without addressing local concerns, Wells & Co risked delaying the launch of its new brewhouse and its ability to brew at the volumes the business was built around.

We first undertook a feasibility study to assess the potential for developing a borehole supply and define the regulatory approach with the Environment Agency to obtain an abstraction licence. A detailed Water Features Survey (WFS) was undertaken to identify nearby water features and existing abstractions that could potentially be affected by the proposed abstraction.

As part of the borehole development process, detailed geological data and an extended programme of test pumping were carried out to collect the relevant data to assess the impact of the new borehole on the local water environment. By managing the project from start to finish, we ensured the borehole was designed and constructed to the required quality and standards, while also collecting sufficient data along the way to support the licence application.

We successfully delivered a well-constructed borehole, securing Wells & Co the abstraction licence it needed to draw up to 60,000m³ of water a year for its new brewhouse. At the final stage of the licensing process, licence conditions were agreed that were appropriate to ensure a long-term data set could be collected to robustly demonstrate the impacts of abstraction. The borehole was brought into service and is delivering a consistent quality of water for brewing.