1.2bn plan to recycle sewage waste into drinking water for Hampshire's chalk streams faces criticism due to environmental concerns and cost.

£1.2bn plan to recycle sewage waste into drinking water criticised as a "white elephant". The proposed scheme aims to create a reservoir at Havant in Hampshire, using a plant to process effluent and pipe it into a nearby spring-fed reservoir during droughts. This would reduce water extraction from rare chalk streams, the Rivers Test and Itchen. However, critics argue it poses environmental threats and is a costly endeavour, with more environmentally friendly options available.