Despite assurances from Central Coast Council that it will look into sewerage system problems experienced at Davistown following heavy storms in early February, Davistown Progress Association will push for a more immediate solution.
The town’s sewer system experienced major flooding, with more than 400 homes affected, and some residents without the use of their toilets or showers for up to eight days.
Truckloads of Portalooos were brought in to provide a temporary solution.
While the sewer system is once again fully functional, residents want to safeguard against a repeat event.
Central Coast Council Director, Water and Sewer, Jamie Loader, said the problem occurred in a couple of areas in the region where a vacuum sewerage system is in place.
“Davistown and some other areas, including South Tacoma, have a vacuum sewerage system, rather than one which works on gravity where waste flows to a pump station,” Loader said.
“The vacuum system, installed in low lying areas where we can’t get the fall to the pump station, works on a vacuum which sucks sewage through to the pump station.
“At Davistown, there is an average of one pot between each two properties, but when the pots flood, they don’t work.
“To put a solution in place, we had to wait for the flood water to subside below the level of the pots so we could go through and bring each one on line.
“It was a manual process and there are five different systems operating at Davistown, so we had to work through each one.
“We are aware of the issue and the challenge for us is always access.
“We have to wait for the flood water to get to a point where we can get in there and do something.
“We tried to minimise the impact on residents as much as possible and prioritised the area, and we are now reviewing the situation at Davistown.
“A lot of lessons were learned through this latest event.”
Loader said Council was about to install a low pressure system at South Tacoma, hopefully within the next six months, where there is a pot on every property and each pot has its own pump, so they continue to work when flooded.
“But pumping floodwater can cause other problems,” he said.
“And if the power goes out, they won’t work at all.”
Loader said once a review of the system at South Tacoma was completed, it would be among options considered for a permanent fix at Davistown.
Loader said observing how the system worked at South Tacoma, with only 100 residents, would help determine how well it would work at Davistown, with 400-500 residents.
“We need to work out the best option going forward,” he said.
“Maybe there is also other technology out there we can look at.”
“Fortunately we don’t have that scale of storm event often.”
But Davistown Progress Association President, Jenny McCulla, said members would be pressing for a more immediate solution.
“We will be pushing for a total audit of the current system here being absolutely necessary without delay,” McCulla said.
She said a speedy resolution was needed in the interests of public health.
Source:
Interview, Feb 24
Jamie Loader, Director Water and Sewer, Central Coast Council
Media statement, Feb 24
Jenny McCulla, President, Davistown Progress Association
Reporter: Terry Collins