| Addressing an ageing asset unfit for Gippsland
The ‘ROS’
The Regional Outfall Sewer (ROS) was built in the 1950s and is a source of community concern. The ROS starts at Morwell and is gravity fed for 87 kilometres. It traverses the first 46 kilometres in a pipe, before turning into an open channel just east of Rosedale where it continues for another 41 kilometres to the Duston Downs treatment facility. While it has been extremely effective in transferring wastewater for more than 50 years, raw sewage travelling in an open channel for this distance is no longer acceptable in Australia.
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Odour
In 1997 the Environment Protection Authority placed a pollution abatement notice on Gippsland Water due to the foul odour emitted from the open channel section of the ROS. When Gippsland Water Factory is operational, all raw sewage flows will be removed from the ROS. The Latrobe Valley and Rosedale’s wastewater will be treated at the Maryvale plant before entering the ROS, free of the organics that cause the odour, while Sale and Fulham’s wastewater will be piped separately and directly to Dutson Downs. Removing raw sewage from the ROS is the key driver for the Gippsland Water Factory.
Capacity
In addition to the odour issue in the open channel section, there is a capacity issue in the piped section of the ROS. With growth continuing in Gippsland, it is likely the piped section of the ROS will soon have insufficient capacity to cope during peak wet weather periods. The Gippsland Water Factory addresses this issue by recycling eight million litres of the wastewater it treats each day and selling it to local industry. This recycled water will be piped directly to Australian Paper which is contracted to buy the water and will not travel down the ROS.
Asset life
The condition of the pipe is also an area of concern that will be addressed by the Gippsland Water Factory. At present, the organics that cause odour in the open channel section of the ROS are also causing corrosion in the pipe. Continuing to send raw sewage down the ROS is limiting its asset life. Treating the wastewater at the Gippsland Water Factory before it enters the ROS will ensure that only highly treated wastewater, free of the organics that cause corrosion, travels down the ROS.
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