Scottish Water has completed a £2 million project to take care of the future of North Hoy and Graemsay's water supply.

An innovative new rural Water Treatment Works (WTW) to serve the island communities was designed, built and tested in partnership with Ross-shire Engineering at its specialist facility in Muir of Ord, near Inverness. It was then delivered to its long term home near Sandy Loch, Hoy, late last summer.

Following installation and final commissioning, water from the new Works has been supplying the two communities', approximately 105 resident customers and significantly more during the tourist season, since mid-December. In recent weeks, the site has seen the removal of equipment that is no longer required as well as some landscaping ahead of the coming growing season to help the site naturally blend into the surrounding area.

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As well as using modern membrane treatment technology to provide improved water quality for years to come, the project is expected to remove the need for regular tankering of water from South Hoy to supplement the North Hoy supply.

Scottish Water Project Manager Mike Grieve said: "We are very pleased to have completed our work in North Hoy. The new Water Treatment Works is already providing customers with an improved supply of clear, fresh drinking water.

"Delivering investment to meet the needs of small island communities involves different challenges to working in towns and cities. By assembling and commissioning the new plant under factory conditions, we were able to deliver a high quality product efficiently, with less disruption for the local community during construction.

"The new WTW houses modern water treatment technology, but within an unobtrusive small building that will blend into its surroundings even better as the landscaping takes effect.

"We would like to thank customers for their patience while we have been delivering this important project to take care of the future of their water supply."