Veolia Water Central

The company was formed as Three Valleys Water in 1994 by the merger of the Colne Valley, Rickmansworth and Lee Valley Water companies, which had been bought by Veolia Water UK in 1987. North Surrey Water joined the group in October 2000. Colne Valley Water Company The Colne Valley Water Company was incorporated by the '''''' (36 & 37 Vict. c. lxxx). It became Colne Valley Water Company plc, and then Colne Valley Water Limited, in 1992. Rickmansworth Water Company The Rickmansworth Waterworks Company was incorporated by the '''''' (47 & 48 Vict. c. xvii). It was renamed the Rickmansworth and Uxbridge Valley Water Company by the '''''' (48 & 49 Vict. c. xx) to reflect an expansion in the area served. Amersham, Beaconsfield and District Waterworks Company The Amersham, Beaconsfield and District Waterworks Company was authorised by the '''''' to supply water in part of Buckinghamshire. It was later merged into the Rickmansworth and Uxbridge Valley Water Company. Lee Valley Water Company The Lee Valley Water Company was incorporated by the ' (7 & 8 Eliz. 2. c. li). It was formed by a merger of three existing water companies, the , the , and the ', together with the water supply of Letchworth Garden City, Knebworth, Hertford, Stevenage, Baldock, Hitchin, Ware, Welwyn Garden City, and Braughing. The company became Lee Valley Water plc in 1992. The Barnet District Water Company had been formed by the '''''' (35 & 36 Vict. c. clxxxix). The Herts and Essex Water Company was incorporated by the ' (1 & 2 Eliz. 2. c. xi), in place of the earlier Herts and Essex Waterworks Company, first authorised to supply water by the '. The Royston Water Company was first authorised to supply water by the ''''''. The ' was formed by the ' (28 & 29 Vict. c. xvii). The Lee Valley Water Company bought the copmpany in 1973. North Surrey Water North Surrey Water Company was formed in 1973 from four existing companies. The ' was formed by the ' (40 & 41 Vict. c. clxii). The Norwood and Sunningdale companies combined by the ' (46 & 47 Vict. c. cxlvii) into the '. It absorbed the Woking and District Water Company by the '''''' (SI 1973/1604), which renamed the company the North Surrey Water Company. Woking and District Water Company The Woking and District Water Company was founded as the ' by the ' (44 & 45 Vict. c. cxvi). The Woking and District Water Company absorbed the West Surrey Water Company by the '''''' (SI 1959/1793). The ' had been formed by the ' (32 & 33 Vict. c. cxii) to supply water to Walton, Weybridge, Chertsey, Byfleet, Cobham, and Shepperton. ==Supply area==

The area served lay to the north and west of London, including parts of Hertfordshire, Bedfordshire, Buckinghamshire, Essex and Surrey. The company depended heavily upon the local chalk aquifer for its supplies. Eventually due to a combination of lower than average rainfall and growing demand, the aquifer became depleted. This affected the environment as some watercourses become seasonal and domestic users were subject to drought restrictions, for the first time for many years. This may have been a contributing factor in the outbreak of Cryptosporidium parvum in March 1997 when Three Valleys had to ask 300,000 consumers in Hertfordshire and thousands more in the London boroughs of Harrow and Brent to boil water. The health warning also caused the closure of schools in affected areas. The source was never isolated though several water supply boreholes in the chalk aquifer between St Albans and Bushey contained the pathogen. ==References==