One of the Central Coast’s main drinking water treatment plants at Somersby has undergone around $11 million worth of upgrade works.
Gosford and Wyong Councils currently plan to spend around $30 million over 20 years to make sure the Somersby Water Treatment Plant continues delivering safe and reliable drinking water to the community. Gosford Council’s director of Construction and Operations Mr Stan Antczak said the recent works included a $3.5 million revamp of the plant’s fi ltration system. “Improving the Somersby plant’s 14 fi lters was an important part of its upgrade requirements,” Mr Antczak said. “These fi lters remove any remaining particles from the water after it’s been through the fi rst steps of the treatment process. “The old fi lters, along with most of the plant’s equipment, had been operating for between 30 and 40 years. “With existing equipment ageing and our population growing, it’s important that we boost the plant’s performance to meet current and future water supply needs. “This signifi cant investment will also ensure the community’s water continues to be treated to the Australian Drinking Water Guidelines and help minimise discoloured water issues for Gosford residents,” he said. Wyong Council’s director of Special Projects Mr Greg McDonald said the plant’s electrical and control system had also recently undergone a $6 million overhaul. “Given its age and condition, Somersby’s electrical and control system needed signifi cant improvements,” Mr McDonald said. “As part of these works, the plant’s operators can now see a real-time snapshot of water quality at all times, including any potential issues so they can respond quickly. “The Somersby plant is a vital part of the region’s entire water supply system, which makes this investment even more essential. “It currently has the capacity to supply over 140 million litres of treated water every day, or over 1,500 litres per second. “If needed, this water can be transferred to the Wyong Shire to supply residents there as well,” he said. Other major work at the plant has included $1 million in mechanical equipment and instrumentation upgrades as well as the earlier replacement of two of its four sludge scrapers, worth around $500,000. These scrapers are the fi rst of their kind installed in a water treatment plant in Australia. The Central Coast has the third largest urban water supply in NSW, which includes three water treatment plants at Somersby, Mardi and Woy Woy, that deliver quality water in-line with Australian Drinking Water Guidelines.
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Media release, 1 Dec 2014
Gosford Council media