FISH and coastal water wildlife in the Solent will be able to breathe a little better after a major upgrade was announced for sewage treatment in Southampton.

Southern Water is to pump more than £25 million into Millbrook Wastewater Treatment Works in Western Docks in a major overhaul which will result in it being more environmentally friendly.

The overhaul will see parts of the site rebuilt and the treatment process enhanced so that the water leaving the site is of the best possible quality and continues to meet tightening environment Agency standards.

A process to remove nutrients like nitrogen from the treated wastewater will be introuduced before it is released into the Solent.

When levels of nutrients are too high algal blooms can grow, reducing oxygen in the water, which can smother fish and other creatures.

Project manager Dennis Taplin said: “This is a major investment the result of which will be a modern treatment works for the city.

It’s also an important scheme with many environmental benefits for the Solent.”

The announcement comes after months of behind the scenes investigations.

It is thought the project will be completed in the summer of 2014. Following the upgrade Millbrook will have the capacity to treat up to 73 million litres of wastewater per day from a population of about 130,000 people.

Work will be carried out by contractor 4Deliver