Water storage plan to be challenged

A move to reverse the States of Guernsey's decision to store water at Les Vardes quarry is set to be launched by the president of the island's Scrutiny Management Committee.

Deputy Andy Sloan said he did not "think it's fair to ask this generation, one that has gone through the cost‑of‑living crisis, to pay £20–30m for a reservoir they don't need".

In May 2025 the States decided to use Les Vardes quarry for freshwater storage to strengthen resilience over time.

The Committee for Environment and Infrastructure (E&I) said the decision to use Les Vardes for water storage was "exactly what responsible island infrastructure planning requires". Guernsey Water has also been contacted for comment.

In a statement Deputy Adrian Gabriel, the president of E&I, said Guernsey's water security "is not a nice to have, it is an essential requirement for our island".

"The States has already determined the strategic direction; revisiting that decision would not create new water, nor shorten the engineering timescales.

"The practical question now is how we deliver the preparatory work efficiently and transparently."

Sloan challenged the decision and said: "Why are we planning to spend another £20–30m on a reservoir to provide resilience for a one‑in‑500‑year event? That takes us back to the times of Charles I."

The decision to turn Les Vardes into a reservoir came alongside a move to store the island's inert waste, including builders rubble, at Black Rock near The Bridge.

States Trading Supervisory Board president Mark Helyar said the figures which were used to make the decision to store inert waste were "manifestly and grossly underestimated".

Following a series of questions in Guernsey's States in February about water storage in the island, former E&I president Lindsay de Sausmarez said part of the rationale for making Les Vardes a reservoir was about efficiencies which could be gained from consolidating the current system of many smaller reservoirs.

She added a policy letter on the next steps will be coming back to the States this term from E&I and possibly the supervisory board.

Deputy Sloan said he had not been shown how the rationale would be demonstrated in practice and said: "That's one of those narrative arguments they never demonstrated."

He said there were a number of options open to him to reverse the decision made by the States last year, including a requête and a scrutiny committee report following a possible public hearing.

"In time I'll probably come to the States asking them to reconsider that decision," he said.

"There's plenty of time to stop us making this error."

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