Queen Mother Reservoir

The Queen Mother Reservoir is a public water supply reservoir that lies between the M4 and the M25 to the west of London. It is 475 acres (1.92 km2) in size or about 1 km in diameter - making it one of the largest inland areas of water in Southern England.[1] It is managed by Thames Water.

Queen Mother Reservoir
Reservoir and sailing club
Queen Mother Reservoir
LocationBerkshire, England
Coordinates51°28′55″N 0°32′56″W
TypeBank side reservoir
Basin countriesUnited Kingdom
Surface area475 acres (1.92 km2)
Water volume38,000 megalitres (1,300×10^6 cu ft)

This is one of a number of reservoirs to the west of London and was completed in 1976. It was inaugurated on 9 July that year by Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother, after whom it is named.[2] Its water is pumped from the River Thames nearby.[3] The water improves in quality during its retention in the reservoir as solids settle and organic contaminants are adsorbed and degraded through a combination of natural biological processes aided by sunlight and oxygenation. Water from the reservoir is treated (often using slow sand filters) before being put into supply as London tap water.[4] The reservoir contains a limnological tower.[5]

During the design and early construction it was called the Datchet reservoir.[6]

Engineering design data for the Queen Mother reservoir is as follows.[6]

Parameter Value
Top water level above ordnance datum 35 m
Volume of water storage 37 million m3
Maximum depth of water 23 m
Water area 192 ha
Maximum height of bank above ground 20 m
Perimeter of bank 5,350 m

The reservoir lies within the Colne Valley regional park and like other local reservoirs is popular for sailing and bird-watching. Petrels have been spotted at this reservoir.[7]

See also

References
  1. Datchet Water sailing club
  2. "The Queen Mother Reservoir - some aspects of its design and construction" (PDF). geplus.co.uk. Retrieved 19 June 2015.
  3. BBC News Homes flooded by reservoir leak Saturday, 8 April 2006
  4. News Release Thames Water Employs Reservoir Profiler to Reduce Costs (6 June 2007) Archived September 19, 2007, at the Wayback Machine
  5. Pawsey, D B H; Humphrey, A W (October 1976). "he Queen Mother Reservoir – some aspects of its design and construction". Ground Engineering: 27–30.
  6. Bell, F. G. (1979). Engineering Geology and Geotechnics. Butterworth-Heinemann Ltd. p. 270. ISBN 9780408003551.
  7. Thames Water official website - Birdwatching


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