THE MAGAZINE FOR THE DRAINAGE, WATER & WASTEWATER INDUSTRIES
MAIN FEATURE
Dawsongroup: Flexline C120 also cut energy use in aeration processes.
With what is predicted to be a massive AMP8 looming, any savings in energy use should surely help to address the urgent need for improvements in the network fabric and structure. In some places we must be sitting on time bombs, there is so much work to be done. Talking of time bombs, there is also the long-term security aspect – the supply chain needs to remain secure and operational at all times. I’m guessing that long gone are the days when I could just wander in to the water treatment works at Ingbirchworth as part of my regular walks round the reservoir and country lanes there.
Data plotting software like GIS (geographic information systems) can be a huge benefit to seeing what is down there and tracing it, mapping it and keeping it. It can also help prioritise what needs replacing first as well as liaising with other utilities so that everything can be done simultaneously. No more information silos, better accessibility and knowledge, and ultimately, a reduction in wastage and leakage.
The net zero effect
All this relentless pressure on our ageing sewer network is not helped by the anxiety created by 2030 net zero targets (although these seem to have become a bit of a moving feast lately). Operating
FOLLOW US
systems, pumps and all related work within sewers for maintenance, repairs and replacements will be under close scrutiny, so it’s vital that those involved do not lose sight of the fundamental importance of continuing to protect a fragile network. Yes, the latest electric pumps and equipment powered by renewable energy are all very well, but will they help protect the system or could they damage it even further? These are questions that need to be asked every time we contemplate any work on a sewer. Of any kind.
The value of nature-based solutions to flooding issues has become much more mainstream recently as by providing more natural and sustainable ways to reduce flood risks and to adapt to climate change, they are easier on the eye than hard-engineered solutions as well as being easier on the planet’s resources and many of them should help to improve bio-diversity at the same time. These types of solutions are now also being recognised for the crucial role they play in improving water quality, something we should all be grateful for.
The importance of trees and hedges cannot be over-emphasised. They slow water run-off and absorb much of it. Even tree canopies help by preventing about 30 per cent of rainfall from
Dawsongroup: Fitted out UrbanJet
reaching the ground in the first place. All this take some of the strain off our old sewer and drain networks, which need every bit of help we can give them. I still celebrate when I see bulrushes growing down in my local stream, as I know they are absorbing toxic micro-organisms and poisonous metals. We are in a big agricultural area so there is bound to be plenty of run-off into that stream. Put it like this; I wouldn’t swim in it or drink directly from it.
Scary facts – is separation the future key?
Today, in England, more than one in six properties (or around 5 million houses) are at risk of flooding. Many of us will have seen those terrifying maps of what the UK will look like once the ocean levels
August 2024 | 19
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68 |
Page 69 |
Page 70 |
Page 71 |
Page 72 |
Page 73 |
Page 74 |
Page 75 |
Page 76
