Europe's largest environmental project wins regional civil engineering award
The Strategic Pipeline Alliance (SPA), delivered by partners Anglian Water Services, Costain, Farrans, Jacobs and Mott MacDonald Bentley, has won the 2025 ICE East Midlands Carbon and Sustainability Merit Award, sponsored by WM Planthire.
Anglian Water operates in the East of England, one of the driest areas in the UK. With a rapidly growing population of seven million customers, the Strategic Pipeline Alliance (SPA) was created to ensure a continued supply of fresh, clean water.
The SPA will deliver one of Europe’s biggest environmental projects: a new 320-kilometre drinking water mains grid for the east of England, running from North Lincolnshire to Essex which when complete, will transfer 265 million litres per day.
The Carbon and Sustainability Award winner was recognised by the judges for its ambition; a major infrastructure project to enable Anglian Water to move water to water-stressed areas, combatting the future risk of droughts and enabling ecosystem recovery by reducing groundwater abstractions.
In the same category, Nottingham’s Richard Bonington School SuDS Retrofit was Highly Commended. Delivered by AtkinsRéalis and Whitehouse Construction for Severn Trent Water, the judges were impressed that this project tackled surface water problems at the school by adding swales, rain gardens and planters.
Commenting on this year’s ICE East Midlands Merit Awards, Regional Director, Jo Barnett, said: “Our judges had a diverse range of projects to consider from all sectors of the industry, drawn from right across the region. Many entries this year also highlighted the sustainable benefits civil engineers in the region are bringing to our everyday lives. The Strategic Pipeline Alliance stood out as one of Europe’s biggest environmental projects utilising innovations.
“Our annual awards are important in not only demonstrating the importance of civil engineers, whose hard work and dedication can often go unnoticed, but in also celebrating the positive impact these projects have on communities across the region and beyond.”
The ICE East Midlands Merit Awards were held on June 13 in Nottingham. Guests were joined by ICE Vice President, Richard Bayfield and guest speaker Professor Turi King, Director of the Milner Centre for Evolution at the University of Bath, known for her work leading the genetic analysis for the identification of King Richard III. The headline sponsor of the 2025 ICE East Midlands Merit Awards was Waterman Aspen.