Works have begun on City West Water and the City of Yarra’s $1.78 million stormwater harvesting facility at Fitzroy North’s Edinburgh Gardens.
The jointly funded project aims to save around 20 million litres of drinking water – equivalent to eight Olympic-sized swimming pools – per year by capturing and distributing urban stormwater run-off to irrigate the iconic parkland.
The project will expand on the existing stormwater harvesting scheme by installing a one million litre below-ground storage tank and upgrading the existing pipelines and pumping infrastructure to enable the capture of sufficient stormwater to meet most of the park’s irrigation needs.
City West Water’s Managing Director, Maree Lang, said the project will help to lessen the demand on Melbourne’s drinking water for irrigating recreational parklands.
“It will also help to maintain Edinburgh Gardens as a green and healthy space, which we know provides incredible liveability benefits for the community,” Ms Lang said.
“Collaborative green infrastructure projects such as this also encourage opportunities for active, healthy lifestyles and ultimately improve health outcomes for local residents.”
Yarra City Council Mayor, Cr Misha Coleman, said, “We’re really thrilled to kick-start these works at Edinburgh Gardens, which once complete, will capture an extra 20 million litres of rainwater to keep these much-loved gardens green and healthy.”
“The upgrades will also help us mitigate downstream flooding in the Fitzroy area, will reduce water pollution and will contribute to Yarra’s ambitious water reduction targets.”
Stormwater harvesting involves capturing and diverting stormwater runoff during periods of rain from urban areas for treatment, storage and use for irrigation of open spaces.
The project is expected to be finished by the end of 2020.
For more information on the Edinburgh Gardens Stormwater Harvesting Project, click here.
