Environment Agency - Hertfordshire Chalk Groundwater Model Update & GW Emergence

This future opportunity notice is published in order to highlight this project (Phase 1) to the market and allow potential bidders time to allocate resources for tendering purposes. The Agency would also like to highlight future opportunities which are related to this project. This notice does not commit the Agency to proceeding beyond this point and the Agency reserves the right to amend and adapt the requirements outlined below.

The general objective of this project, which is currently in Phase 1 (this current financial year) is to further update the existing groundwater model that will significantly improve the Environment Agency's ability to make abstraction licensing decisions on a sound scientific basis and, in doing so, protect and/or enhance sensitive groundwater-dependent chalk streams and ecosystems supported by the Chalk aquifer. The model represents a number of Chalk streams that are situated in the Wye, Colne and Lee catchments. These catchments have been previously assessed to suffer from large scale over abstraction through the Catchment Abstraction Management Strategy (CAMS) methodology. This area has a high level of public interest and challenge to existing abstraction management (and management tools) particularly in relation to the protection of Chalk Streams. Other pressures include water quality issues such as Bromate contamination and large scale infrastructure projects such as High Speed Rail 2.

Additional information:

Specialist Skills

Tenders will be assessed to ensure the chosen Supplier has all the appropriate skills and expertise to successfully execute the project. It is critical that bidders are competent in developing regional-scale numerical groundwater modelling using any of these codes (SWAcMOD, 4R, 4R6, MODFLOW-96 and MODFLOW6). Proven experience in the Chalk aquifer in England and familiarity with relevant EA guidance for water resources management is essential.