Bridge rebuild plans scrapped over drinking water fears

Plans to rebuild a bridge washed away in a storm have now been scrapped following concerns a new structure could contaminate drinking water in thousands of nearby homes.

Llanerch Bridge, which crosses the River Clwyd in Denbighshire, collapsed in January 2021 following Storm Christoph.

Local businesses said the closure - which led to a seven mile (11km) detour – had caused a slump in trade, which they had hoped a new bridge could help alleviate.

But those efforts have now been shelved after concerns raised by Denbighshire Council that the work could endanger public health.

Concerns centre around a vital freshwater aquifer used by Welsh Water to supply drinking water to the area, located beneath the original bridge.

The new bridge - estimated to cost between £8m and £10m - would require engineers to drill deep into sandstone layers, potentially creating fissures that could contaminate the water.

Although £1.5m has been spent on design work, the council said it cannot guarantee the works would not endanger public health, with a committee voting for the project to be paused.

Speaking before the decision, councillor Chris Evans criticised plans to scrap the project, calling for a temporary bridge to be considered.

"We knew about the aquifer when we started," he said.

"Why have we spent over a million pounds on drawings, meetings, and an exercise to get the bridge done?

"It is a major route, a major link, not just for the local villages but for people going to the A55."

He added that the detour has led to higher fuel prices for local residents.

"There are only two ways out of this," he said.

"Either build a bridge or a temporary bridge. If you are telling me that, in 2025, we can't span 10, 15, or 20 feet of water in the world we live in, we've got major problems. Why are we not consulting with construction companies?"

James Elson, another councillor, also called for a temporary bridge to be built.

"What was there before was a single-track bridge, and there is nothing to stop it being a single-track bridge again, but they don't seem to take that on board," he said.