🔗 TAKE THE SURVEY HERE - LINK IN BIO:
ee-eu.kobotoolbox.org/x/fXVdDnek
#WhiteHorseReservoir #SESRO #OurParishes #HaveYourSay #ValeOfWhiteHorse #CommunityVoice #ChalkStreams
ee-eu.kobotoolbox.org/x/fXVdDnek
#WhiteHorseReservoir #SESRO #OurParishes #HaveYourSay #ValeOfWhiteHorse #CommunityVoice #ChalkStreams
October 5, 2026 at 6:11 AM
🔗 TAKE THE SURVEY HERE - LINK IN BIO:
ee-eu.kobotoolbox.org/x/fXVdDnek
#WhiteHorseReservoir #SESRO #OurParishes #HaveYourSay #ValeOfWhiteHorse #CommunityVoice #ChalkStreams
ee-eu.kobotoolbox.org/x/fXVdDnek
#WhiteHorseReservoir #SESRO #OurParishes #HaveYourSay #ValeOfWhiteHorse #CommunityVoice #ChalkStreams
Ardlington Marsh lock on the @wiltsberks.bsky.social this lock is likely to be lost forever due to the proposed Sesro Reservoir.
Another fantastic lock to see with the gates still in place like a couple in the area. Amazing to see this derelict lock still defying nature
Another fantastic lock to see with the gates still in place like a couple in the area. Amazing to see this derelict lock still defying nature
November 28, 2025 at 6:16 PM
Ardlington Marsh lock on the @wiltsberks.bsky.social this lock is likely to be lost forever due to the proposed Sesro Reservoir.
Another fantastic lock to see with the gates still in place like a couple in the area. Amazing to see this derelict lock still defying nature
Another fantastic lock to see with the gates still in place like a couple in the area. Amazing to see this derelict lock still defying nature
Parish councils and local representatives are working together to launch an independent parish-wide survey on the proposed White Horse Reservoir (SESRO), giving residents, businesses and communities an opportunity to put their views and concerns formally on record.
October 5, 2026 at 6:11 AM
Parish councils and local representatives are working together to launch an independent parish-wide survey on the proposed White Horse Reservoir (SESRO), giving residents, businesses and communities an opportunity to put their views and concerns formally on record.
Thames Water SESRO water delivery rate = 271M litres per day; Thames Water pipe leakage rate = ~600 M litres per day. The issue is not a few retired NIMBYs, but TW's utterly catastrophic (and deserved) reputation.
September 14, 2026 at 1:55 PM
Thames Water SESRO water delivery rate = 271M litres per day; Thames Water pipe leakage rate = ~600 M litres per day. The issue is not a few retired NIMBYs, but TW's utterly catastrophic (and deserved) reputation.
Is it more viable to build so many reservoirs and/or the Severn-Thames link? Or will it just lead to more delays and time than waiting for SESRO to fill?
January 27, 2026 at 8:53 AM
Is it more viable to build so many reservoirs and/or the Severn-Thames link? Or will it just lead to more delays and time than waiting for SESRO to fill?
An absolutely brilliant video from @courtabovethecut.bsky.social
Have a visual look at SESRO and our heritage.
youtu.be/0ZrGqjHuSuA?...
Have a visual look at SESRO and our heritage.
youtu.be/0ZrGqjHuSuA?...
A Century of Decay - Abandoned Canal Locks
YouTube video by Court Above The Cut
youtu.be
January 13, 2026 at 7:47 AM
An absolutely brilliant video from @courtabovethecut.bsky.social
Have a visual look at SESRO and our heritage.
youtu.be/0ZrGqjHuSuA?...
Have a visual look at SESRO and our heritage.
youtu.be/0ZrGqjHuSuA?...
The leader of Vale of White Horse District Council has demanded government intervention over escalating reservoir costs. In a letter to the Secretary of State for the Environment, Food & Rural Affairs, Cllr Bethia Thomas requested a meeting & public inquiry.
www.southandvale.gov.uk/app/uploads/...
www.southandvale.gov.uk/app/uploads/...
November 17, 2025 at 2:35 PM
The leader of Vale of White Horse District Council has demanded government intervention over escalating reservoir costs. In a letter to the Secretary of State for the Environment, Food & Rural Affairs, Cllr Bethia Thomas requested a meeting & public inquiry.
www.southandvale.gov.uk/app/uploads/...
www.southandvale.gov.uk/app/uploads/...
In #Oxfordshire, it seems that greenbelt is only greenbelt until land owners manage secure permissions to sell for property development - a process which is getting all too easy. The 'Abingdon' SESRO reservoir will be a huge biodiversity deadzone...
#ProtectGreenbelt
#ProtectGreenbelt
August 14, 2025 at 7:01 AM
In #Oxfordshire, it seems that greenbelt is only greenbelt until land owners manage secure permissions to sell for property development - a process which is getting all too easy. The 'Abingdon' SESRO reservoir will be a huge biodiversity deadzone...
#ProtectGreenbelt
#ProtectGreenbelt
Thames Water still wants to build the scheme, although of course it will cost a lot more now with the cost of construction having risen faster than inflation generally
thames-sro.co.uk/projects/ses...
thames-sro.co.uk/projects/ses...
South East Strategic Reservoir Option (SESRO) - Thames Water Resources Management Plan
We’re proposing to build a new reservoir near Abingdon in Oxfordshire.
thames-sro.co.uk
May 17, 2025 at 9:35 AM
Thames Water still wants to build the scheme, although of course it will cost a lot more now with the cost of construction having risen faster than inflation generally
thames-sro.co.uk/projects/ses...
thames-sro.co.uk/projects/ses...
Thames Water's forecast for the cost of SESRO, the proposed giant reservoir near Oxford to serve southeast England after 2040, has increased from £2.8B to £6.6B in 2022 prices.
Sounds terrible, right? NO! It's actually good!
1/
Sounds terrible, right? NO! It's actually good!
1/
www.thameswater.co.uk
August 24, 2025 at 8:51 AM
Thames Water's forecast for the cost of SESRO, the proposed giant reservoir near Oxford to serve southeast England after 2040, has increased from £2.8B to £6.6B in 2022 prices.
Sounds terrible, right? NO! It's actually good!
1/
Sounds terrible, right? NO! It's actually good!
1/
I went to the SESRO glad-handing display in Abingdon last week and found it glossy, overly positive and shallow.
I asked some awkward questions and was surprised to find a person who claimed to be the project manager didn’t know how long the reserviour will be or how much it will weigh when full.
I asked some awkward questions and was surprised to find a person who claimed to be the project manager didn’t know how long the reserviour will be or how much it will weigh when full.
The leader of Vale of White Horse District Council has demanded government intervention over escalating reservoir costs. In a letter to the Secretary of State for the Environment, Food & Rural Affairs, Cllr Bethia Thomas requested a meeting & public inquiry.
www.southandvale.gov.uk/app/uploads/...
www.southandvale.gov.uk/app/uploads/...
November 17, 2025 at 5:53 PM
I went to the SESRO glad-handing display in Abingdon last week and found it glossy, overly positive and shallow.
I asked some awkward questions and was surprised to find a person who claimed to be the project manager didn’t know how long the reserviour will be or how much it will weigh when full.
I asked some awkward questions and was surprised to find a person who claimed to be the project manager didn’t know how long the reserviour will be or how much it will weigh when full.
I've written about Thames Water's South East Strategic Reservoir Option (SESRO), the proposed giant reservoir in Oxfordshire, but that's actually no. 2 in Thames's plan to make the southeast resilient to drought. No.1 is Teddington Direct River Abstraction, outlined in this Guardian article
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1/
£500m Thames Water desalination plant has provided just seven days’ water over 15 years
Plant in Beckton has run only five times and has been beset by multiple problems since it was built
www.theguardian.com
September 26, 2025 at 12:16 PM
I've written about Thames Water's South East Strategic Reservoir Option (SESRO), the proposed giant reservoir in Oxfordshire, but that's actually no. 2 in Thames's plan to make the southeast resilient to drought. No.1 is Teddington Direct River Abstraction, outlined in this Guardian article
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1/
Cllr Thomas: “This cost explosion changes everything. SESRO was approved on assumptions that Thames Water itself now admits were wildly inaccurate. Continuing down this path without a full reassessment would be reckless & could leave taxpayers footing the bill for a project that fails to deliver."
November 17, 2025 at 2:35 PM
Cllr Thomas: “This cost explosion changes everything. SESRO was approved on assumptions that Thames Water itself now admits were wildly inaccurate. Continuing down this path without a full reassessment would be reckless & could leave taxpayers footing the bill for a project that fails to deliver."
Good old CPRE ("we hate everything new") tried to bring a judicial review of Thames Water's plan to develop the South East Strategic Reservoir Option (SESRO), a plan to build a giant reservoir near Oxford to serve the Thames Valley and beyond.
It was dismissed 🙂
It was dismissed 🙂
Abingdon Reservoir judicial review dismissed by High Court
Thames Water's £2.2bn South East Strategic Reservoir Option will be created near Abingdon.
www.bbc.co.uk
August 11, 2025 at 6:15 PM
Good old CPRE ("we hate everything new") tried to bring a judicial review of Thames Water's plan to develop the South East Strategic Reservoir Option (SESRO), a plan to build a giant reservoir near Oxford to serve the Thames Valley and beyond.
It was dismissed 🙂
It was dismissed 🙂
btw this report from the Wilts & Berks Canal Trust is worth a read on how Thames Water have short cut (cheapskate bodging!) the plans for the reservoir and removing long term benefits to many + employment & financial gains to locals & good flooding mitigation. wbct.org.uk/south-east-r...
South East Reservoir Strategic Option (SESRO) Statutory Consultation – Wilts & Berks Canal Trust
wbct.org.uk
September 14, 2026 at 12:01 PM
btw this report from the Wilts & Berks Canal Trust is worth a read on how Thames Water have short cut (cheapskate bodging!) the plans for the reservoir and removing long term benefits to many + employment & financial gains to locals & good flooding mitigation. wbct.org.uk/south-east-r...
We looked at SESRO in a long read in March and a series of guest posts from local councillor Andy Cooke, including an analysis of the 'Iron Law of Megaprojects' - and spiralling costs - last month.
oxfordclarion.uk/abingdon-res...
oxfordclarion.uk/abingdon-res...
Abingdon Reservoir: how much will it cost?
The proposed reservoir will be Oxfordshire’s most expensive infrastructure project ever. In the last part of his personal look at the project, Andy Cooke asks if costs will be kept under control.
For...
oxfordclarion.uk
August 13, 2025 at 9:18 PM
We looked at SESRO in a long read in March and a series of guest posts from local councillor Andy Cooke, including an analysis of the 'Iron Law of Megaprojects' - and spiralling costs - last month.
oxfordclarion.uk/abingdon-res...
oxfordclarion.uk/abingdon-res...
For those interested in the reservoir, a series of articles on the topic are available here oxfordclarion.uk/tag/sesro/
July 23, 2025 at 5:15 PM
For those interested in the reservoir, a series of articles on the topic are available here oxfordclarion.uk/tag/sesro/
Thames Water have also dropped plans to relocate three existing solar farms on the land that will be used for the reservoir. They say they will continue to include floating solar panels on the reservoir itself. thames-sro.co.uk/projects/whi...
White Horse Reservoir - previously known as South East Strategic Reservoir Option - SESRO
We’re proposing to build a new reservoir near Abingdon in Oxfordshire.
thames-sro.co.uk
September 14, 2026 at 11:42 AM
Thames Water have also dropped plans to relocate three existing solar farms on the land that will be used for the reservoir. They say they will continue to include floating solar panels on the reservoir itself. thames-sro.co.uk/projects/whi...
Tbf my dad worked with Derek. He's alright. But he lives right next to where SESRO would be built, is a very capable individual, and retired in 2012. A dangerous combination!
May 17, 2025 at 4:08 PM
Tbf my dad worked with Derek. He's alright. But he lives right next to where SESRO would be built, is a very capable individual, and retired in 2012. A dangerous combination!
The Campaign to Protect Rural England and SAFERwaterS, have issued a call for a Judicial Review of the Government’s decision to approve the South East Strategic Reservoir Option (SESRO) without a Public Inquiry.
Full story here...
www.watermagazine.co.uk/2024/11/26/j...
Full story here...
www.watermagazine.co.uk/2024/11/26/j...
Judicial Review call launched against approved Abingdon reservoir - Water Magazine
Groups call for Judicial Review of Government’s decision to approve South East Strategic Reservoir Option (SESRO) without a Public Inquiry.
www.watermagazine.co.uk
November 26, 2024 at 6:53 AM
The Campaign to Protect Rural England and SAFERwaterS, have issued a call for a Judicial Review of the Government’s decision to approve the South East Strategic Reservoir Option (SESRO) without a Public Inquiry.
Full story here...
www.watermagazine.co.uk/2024/11/26/j...
Full story here...
www.watermagazine.co.uk/2024/11/26/j...
🚨BREAKING🚨
The cost of SESRO, the proposed mega reservoir near Abingdon has trebled, and is now forecast at £7.5bn the Telegraph is reporting [paywall link]. The article blames the increase on 'soaring construction costs' www.telegraph.co.uk/business/202...
The cost of SESRO, the proposed mega reservoir near Abingdon has trebled, and is now forecast at £7.5bn the Telegraph is reporting [paywall link]. The article blames the increase on 'soaring construction costs' www.telegraph.co.uk/business/202...
www.telegraph.co.uk
August 13, 2025 at 9:18 PM
🚨BREAKING🚨
The cost of SESRO, the proposed mega reservoir near Abingdon has trebled, and is now forecast at £7.5bn the Telegraph is reporting [paywall link]. The article blames the increase on 'soaring construction costs' www.telegraph.co.uk/business/202...
The cost of SESRO, the proposed mega reservoir near Abingdon has trebled, and is now forecast at £7.5bn the Telegraph is reporting [paywall link]. The article blames the increase on 'soaring construction costs' www.telegraph.co.uk/business/202...
AFAICS there are many unresolved issues with the #SESRO #reservoir as planned, including - water table & flood plain disturbances, water release flow into the #Thames issues, massive carbon footprint & disruption locally for years, spiralling infra costs, & customer funding... #Oxfordshire
January 13, 2026 at 12:09 PM
AFAICS there are many unresolved issues with the #SESRO #reservoir as planned, including - water table & flood plain disturbances, water release flow into the #Thames issues, massive carbon footprint & disruption locally for years, spiralling infra costs, & customer funding... #Oxfordshire
You’re often right in general but SESRO is a stupid example, a gigantic white elephant that exists solely to pad Thames Water’s balance sheet. Just build two smaller, still very large reservoirs and the Severn-Thames Transfer.
January 27, 2026 at 7:37 AM
You’re often right in general but SESRO is a stupid example, a gigantic white elephant that exists solely to pad Thames Water’s balance sheet. Just build two smaller, still very large reservoirs and the Severn-Thames Transfer.
What about leaks, and what about costs? Well truth is that TDRA, SESRO and the current leakage reduction targets are actually the cheapest way to:
–provide SE England with water in a very severe drought
–meet peak demand when everyone is showering, filling paddling pools etc. in heat waves
8/
–provide SE England with water in a very severe drought
–meet peak demand when everyone is showering, filling paddling pools etc. in heat waves
8/
September 26, 2025 at 12:16 PM
What about leaks, and what about costs? Well truth is that TDRA, SESRO and the current leakage reduction targets are actually the cheapest way to:
–provide SE England with water in a very severe drought
–meet peak demand when everyone is showering, filling paddling pools etc. in heat waves
8/
–provide SE England with water in a very severe drought
–meet peak demand when everyone is showering, filling paddling pools etc. in heat waves
8/