Universal Studios UK may build on-site sewage treatment plant

Universal Studios UK could have its own sewage treatment plant.

We spend a lot of time looking at haul roads and trying to work out what’s taking shape on the Universal site. But here’s a question you don’t tend to think about when you’re looking at drone photos: where does everything go when millions of people start using the loos?

With 8.5 million visitors forecast in the resort’s first year, it’s a fair question.

Universal’s June 2025 Water Strategy assumed the resort’s sewage would go into Anglian Water’s network. In January, Anglian Water said Bedford Water Recycling Centre would need a major upgrade to handle the park’s wastewater. In November 2026, the company told Central Bedfordshire councillors that an on-site sewage treatment plant was being explored.

Anglian Water’s Grant Tuffs said the company was working with Universal, its utilities operator and the government on how the resort would get its water and deal with its wastewater. He said the aim was to make sure the development didn’t come at the expense of existing customers.

Universal also has plans for a separate Water Processing and Collection Plant. The idea is to collect rainwater in drainage ponds, treat it on site and use it for jobs like watering the grounds, washing down paths and topping up water features. That would cut the amount of drinking water the park needs.

Universal is targeting a 2031 opening. Most visitors will probably never see this side of the resort, but for those of us who live nearby, it’s one of the more interesting questions about what it takes to open a park of this size.

On the map, we’ve circled the Utility Compound in the southern part of the Lake Zone. Universal’s planning PDFs identify this as the proposed area for the rainwater plant. The exact layout is still to be confirmed.

What would you like to see explained next about the plans for water and wastewater at the resort?