Scottish Water has been accused of endangering public health after it continued to supply water from a reservoir contaminated with E. coli for almost a full year. The state-owned company only halted supplies from the Clarklyhill storage reservoir near Burghead in Moray in July, despite tests detecting dangerous bacteria on three separate occasions in the previous year.
A Network Deemed a 'Danger to Human Health'
The reservoir is part of a network of nearly 1,300 treated water storage points, or TWSPs, which regulators condemned as a 'danger to human health' in 2023. Following this assessment, the Drinking Water Quality Regulator slapped Scottish Water with an enforcement notice demanding a comprehensive clean-up. Each of these storage points typically holds tens of thousands of litres of water, supplying millions of homes and facilities across Scotland.
These tanks, often buried underground, are supposed to be kept sealed and secure to prevent contamination. However, the watchdog was forced to intervene after a series of serious alerts. In one shocking incident, animal remains were discovered at the bottom of a tank in Hollybush, Ayrshire. Contamination from coliform bacteria, which is found in faeces, was also detected at facilities in Darvel, Ayrshire, and Oyne, Aberdeenshire.
Local Anger and Regulatory Condemnation
The failure to act swiftly at Clarklyhill has provoked fury in the local community. Jamie Campbell, secretary of the Burghead and Cummingston Community Council, expressed the collective dismay. 'At no point did Scottish Water notify anyone in Burghead about these ongoing problems,' he said. 'We have major concerns about the risk they have put to the town. We're upset and very angry.'
In a withering report, Scotland's water quality regulator, David Reynolds, concluded that the decision to leave the reservoir in service 'was a clear risk to public health'. Despite the discovery of harmful bugs in tests last September, November, and December, Scottish Water continued piping water from Clarklyhill until July this year.
Slow Progress and Executive Bonuses
Since the 2023 enforcement notice, Scottish Water has inspected and cleaned 723 of its 1,286 TWSPs. Among those inspected, faults were found in at least 173, with some receiving temporary fixes. However, the company admits it has been unable to 'isolate and inspect some tanks' and cannot say exactly how many are now fully cleaned, fixed, and in proper working order. Due to this backlog, Mr Reynolds has issued a fresh enforcement notice for the outstanding work.
This scandal unfolds against a backdrop of households facing a 40 per cent hike in their water bills over six years. Meanwhile, it was revealed that executives at the publicly-owned utility pocketed taxpayer-funded bonuses totalling £236,000 last year, even while many suspect tanks had not undergone initial inspections.
A Scottish Water spokesman stated: 'At Clarklyhill, we repaired the tank, completed a flood test and put it back in service. Subsequently, we had a water test fail, so have since removed the tank again to undertake further root-cause analysis. This is in line with updated protocols.' For the residents of Burghead and millions reliant on Scotland's water network, the assurances come after a prolonged period of unacceptable risk.
