TasWater’s Chimney Saddle Water Treatment Plant (WTP) upgrades have begun, which will lead to more reliable services for customers from Kings Meadows through to George Town.
The WTP is on Blessington Road in White Hills and has the capacity to produce 32 million litres of water a day to customers, the equivalent of almost 13 Olympic sized swimming pools.
TasWater Capital Delivery Office (CDO) Senior Project Manager, Amanda Allen, said the clarifier at the plant is being upgraded, which is a crucial part of the water treatment process.
“The clarifier at Chimney Saddle helps filter out sediment and particles in the water during treatment and removes discolouration,” Mrs Allen said.
“We are upgrading this part so we can continue to provide treated, high quality drinking water to our customers in this part of Launceston for many years to come.”
The Chimney Saddle WTP was built in 1976 and the clarifier now requires an upgrade to ensure the plant can continue to operate effectively.
“The upgrades include removing and replacing underwater plates and pipes and replacing launders, which is a water transfer channel,” Mrs Allen said.
“We have contracted specialist divers from Tasmanian Divers Group who are carrying out the underwater works for us.”
HB Engineering, Spectran, Pfeiffer Cranes and IPD Consulting are also key contractors engaged for the project.
“We are carrying out these works during the cooler, wetter months when the plant has the least amount of demand,” Mrs Allen said.
“This is to ensure there is no impact on water supply to the community.
“We look forward to delivering this project which will ensure our customers continue to receive safe and reliable drinking water that is good to drink.”
The works are expected to be completed by mid-October 2021.
