Victorians 'would be turning in their graves' over £25m Milngavie beauty spot water pipe plan

The new pipeline plan, which forms part of the water distribution work serving greater Glasgow, coincides with the closure of the 1950s-built Burncrooks Water Treatment Works, which Scottish Water has said is not suitable to meet long term water quality standards.

The project which will mean laying pipes around Milngavie and the construction of at least two water pumping stations, is currently going through a "screening" process with East Dunbartonshire Council to decide whether it requires an Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) before any formal planning permission is sought.

Scottish Water says the aims to improve water quality for more than 50,000 people whose supplies came from the Burncrooks tratement works Scottish Water has acknowledged in an initial assessment that the route will have an impact on "sensitive areas" such as the Mugdock Wood Site of Special Scientific Interest, the Milngavie Reservoirs Conservation Area and the Mugdock Country Park.

Friends of Milngavie Reservoir chairman Eddy Yacoubian said: "There is great concern about the effect of these works on the local community and the environment.

"Footpaths around the reservoir will be blocked by construction work and the major visitor attraction in the area, the West Highland Way, will also be disrupted to allow the pipeline to be laid.

"There is an environmental impact with this and it is down to the council to do something about it. We should ask for a proper assessment rather than just believing what Scottish Water say and that everything will be all right on the night.

"It is also believed the project as proposed is not a sustainable option. The Victorian engineers who built the original gravity-fed pipeline from Loch Katrine in the 19th century would be turning in their graves.

"This latest project goes against all their original principles – and Scottish Water’s supposed environmental policies – by installing a new powered pumping station which it’s understood will cost around £1,000 a week in power costs to run and create additional CO2."

The Friends said it is feared Scottish Water were attempting to "slip through" this major construction project as permitted development, which avoids the need for a planning application, public consultation or an EIA and "it’s believed this is why they have effectively kept it under wraps".

Scottish Water carried out a water pipe upgrade in Glasgow last year.

The group also raised concern about the "serious risk of contamination" of Tannoch Loch from the construction work.

Tannoch Loch Ltd, whose shareholders are the residents around the loch, have lodged a formal objection to the proposal and have called on Scottish Water and their contractors, Caledonian Water Alliance to "commit to fail-safe procedures to protect the integrity and health of the loch".

A memo to the council from Scottish Water says it "fully acknowledges that the Milngavie Reservoirs site is of high value to the local area both in terms of residents, visitors and ecology and local and national designations.

From the Scottish Water screening document.

There was also potential impact at Mugdock Reservior on nesting birds, bat roosts and possible closure of footpaths.

Tree felling would be required but would take place outside of the bird nesting season, from March 1 to August 30.

In 2011, Scottish Water was widely criticised over failures which led to high aluminium levels affecting supplies to 12,000 homes near Glasgow.

The Drinking Water Quality Regulator said the incident in March at Burncrooks Water Treatment Works, near Bearsden, had been badly handled.

The Milngavie reservoir, which is a visitor attraction. is made up of the Craigmaddie and Mugdock reservoirs which were opened in 1859 by Queen Victoria.

It became the main supplier of water to the city of Glasgow holding up to 548 million gallons of water.

The waterworks led to the virtual eradication of typhoid and cholera, diseases which were widespread at the time, in the city.

A Scottish Water spokesman said: “Scottish Water recognises that these locations play an important role in local communities and are used and visited by many people.

“As with all projects, we liaise with statutory consultees and communities and we have been talking to key organisations including East Dunbartonshire Council, Scottish Natural Heritage, Historic Environment Scotland and landowners to develop a pathway for our work that will minimise the impact as much as possible.

“We are keen to fully engage with community stakeholders to ensure there is a wide awareness of our plans and keep people informed on the nature of the investment, the improvement to service for customers, how we can best reduce the impact of the planned works and steps to be taken to reinstate areas where Scottish Water has been operating.”