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disinfection, was completed in 2002. The site was chosen because it was away from the main residen- tial areas. A new access road was constructed to reduce
impact of construction and service vehicles on the town. Ecological and environmental surveys were carried out and work undertaken to safeguard the local populations of lesser and greater horseshoe bats.
A network of new pipes was laid to transfer
wastewater from Townstal, Warfleet, Dartmouth Naval College and Dartmouth to the works. Sewage from Kingswear is transferred via a pipeline drilled under the estuary across to Dartmouth, before being transferred through the sewer network to the treatment works. The Kingswear transfer pipeline was constructed 34 metres under the estuary bed to prevent disturbing marine waters. The treated wastewater is discharged via the
existing long outfall next to Coronation Park, Dart- mouth. The by-product, sludge, is taken away for recycling at the Totnes works. South West Water’s Wastewater Operations Man-
ager Rhidian Howells is responsible for a large area that includes Dartmouth. He said: “A five-strong team of operators look
after Dartmouth Wastewater Treatment Works, alongside other nearby works including Dittisham and Stoke Fleming. “The site is visited daily and the operators can be called out at midnight to investigate if any of the 217 automatic alarms are activated. “Around 4,500 cubic metres of waste water now
arrives at Dartmouth Wastewater Treatment Works every day. Mayor’s Avenue Wastewater Pumping Station alone pumps between 95 and 115 litres of sewage a second to Dartmouth Wastewater Treatment Works. “The site produces around 60 cubic metres of biosolids (sludge) a week, which is taken to Totnes Wastewater Treatment Works for further treatment before being recycled for use on agricultural land.” Further improvements were made to
Dartmouth’s sewer network in 2006, when South West Water built a new pumping station on the foreshore at South Town to transfer wastewater from 35 properties between Bayards Cove and Warfleet Creek to an existing sewer in South Town Road. A further 17 properties, still discharging wastewater through 11 private outfalls, were given the opportunity to connect to the new sewer. In the same year, the company replaced a
section of sewer underneath Embankment Road. In 2011, South West Water further improved Dartmouth’s sewer network by refurbishing 1,165 metres of sewer in the town.
Water Facts and figures
● On average, South West Water produces 442 megalitres of drinking water and treats 606 megalitres of sewage every day.
● The company provides water and sewerage services to more than 1.7 million people across Devon, Cornwall and parts of Somerset and Dorset.
● It supplies water services to 99 per cent of homes and sewerage services to 88 per cent of homes in the region.
● South West Water operates more than 650 wastewater treatment works and 29 water treatment works.
● They have 290 service reservoirs (tanks containing treated water) and 21 impounding (storage) reservoirs.
● They also operate more than 1,200 wastewater pumping stations.
● 90 per cent of the South West Water supply comes from surface water sources, such as reservoirs and river intakes. The other 10 per cent comes from groundwater sources including springs, wells and boreholes, mainly located in East Devon.
What not to put in the loo!
Did you know you should only flush the 3Ps – pee, paper and poo – down
the loo? Flushing items such as baby wipes, hygiene wipes, moist toilet tissue, cleaning wipes, cleansing pads and sanitary products can cause sewer blockages and flooding.
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Although wastewater treatment works have screens designed to remove items that shouldn’t be flushed, anything disposed of down the loo can still end up in the rivers and oceans. Sewer blockages (often caused by items such as cotton buds, wipes and sanitary products) can cause flooding and pollution to the local environment. These products can also block and damage pumping stations with similar results. The items can also end up in rivers and the seas when stormwater overflows operate to protect homes from sewer flooding during heavy
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