A £7.5 million programme of investment started on the Isle of Wight with schemes to improve water supply, protect the environment and prevent flooding.

A £700,000 project to build a new wastewater treatment plant got under way at Rookley and planning started for a £2.5 million scheme to tackle localised flooding and pollution in Newport.

We began replacement of nearly 6,000m of water mains with stronger, plastic pipes to reduce the risk of bursts, leaks and interruptions to supplies. Ageing iron pipes were also replaced in several towns, including Newport, Ventnor, East Cowes and Ryde.

A £3 million scheme to protect properties from flooding in the St Mary’s Road area of Cowes was completed. We increased the size of the sewers and built a new stormwater storage tank capable of holding almost 400,000 litres during heavy rain.