Melbourne Water’s Hobsons Bay Main Upgrade Project has taken home the win for Infrastructure Project Innovation at the 2024 Australian Water Association (AWA) Awards.
The project saw the utility and its industry partner, John Holland Group, build a duplicate of the 1960s-era Hobsons Bay Main Sewer, which handles 30 per cent of Melbourne’s wastewater.
The project involved the construction of a 670m tunnel under the Yarra River through challenging geological conditions.
The awards also commended the project for its sustainability, as it achieved net zero emissions by using low-carbon concrete, powering site facilities with solar energy and carbon offsets.
As the Infrastructure Project Innovation category winner, the project automatically qualifies as a national finalist at Ozwater’25 Adelaide, which will be held in May 2025.
Melbourne Water Senior Project Manager, James Le, expressed pride in the achievements of his team and infrastructure partners, which industry peers are now celebrating.
“The team’s dedication to engineering excellence, sustainability, and making a positive social impact has been pivotal in delivering this critical infrastructure project. I’m incredibly proud to work with such a talented and committed group whose innovation and collaboration have set new benchmarks for the industry,” he said
“Congratulations to other award winners and finalists; seeing so many inventive programs and projects and meeting inspiring professionals from across our sector was exciting.”
Melbourne Water was also highly commended in the category of Organisational Excellence for a new sustainable construction framework. The framework applies to upcoming projects and favours new technologies and methods to reduce the carbon emitted during construction works to the lowest level possible.
Featured image: (from left) Melbourne Water Executive General Manager Service Delivery, Sue Jackman; Melbourne Water Executive General Manager Service and Asset Lifecycle, Craig Dixon; Sustainability Champion, MCD Mandhy Senewiratne; John Holland Lead Sustainability Adviser, Keith Dimech; Program Manager MCD, Simia Huda; Lead Sustainability Adviser JH-KBR Joint Venture, Nicholas Cody; and Lead Sustainability Adviser SFP, Gina Sotelo. Image: Melbourne Water.
