TasWater is working with a Tasmanian-based construction company to upgrade the sewer infrastructure in St Helens along the Esplanade.
Water Industry Solutions will replace the sewerage mains with larger sized pipes to increase capacity for quicker transportation of wastewater to the sewage treatment plant and to help reduce the risk of overflows into Georges Bay.
The project will improve environmental impacts of the transport and treatment infrastructure in St Helens, providing a more reliable system with lower risk of impacting local oyster farmers and other seafood businesses.
It will also help improve capacity for tourism and cater for expected growth in St Helens over the next 30 years.
The mains upgrades will begin near the St Helens sewage treatment plant and shortly thereafter at the Jason Street sewage pump station working their way towards the Esplanade pump station.
This two-pronged approach will be employed to reduce the duration of traffic interruptions along the Tasman Highway.
Water Industry Solutions will be using a combination of techniques to replace the underground pipes, including digging trenches and using horizontal directional drilling in some sections to reduce the need to remove and replace earth and existing road surface.
The existing in-ground pipes are of varying diameter and have neared their end of life, with increased susceptibility to breaks and blockages. Three kilometres of 250mm diameter polyethylene pipe will be laid to replace this existing infrastructure, improving the system reliability and capacity.
General Manager of Asset Portfolio, Planning and Delivery at TasWater, Andrew Moir, is pleased this staged project has begun.
“The Jason Street sewage pump station upgrade a few years ago as well as the Jetty Road pump station upgrade more recently were important steps to improving the wastewater infrastructure in this picturesque seaside town,” Mr Moir said.
“Now this project to upgrade the sewage mains and next year after Easter, to upgrade the Esplanade pump station will be another important achievement towards building the town’s capacity for tourism and business development.”
The construction works will begin mid-September 2017 and will be completed in early November 2017.
