Brushy Creek STP upgrade underway

An $11 million upgrade is being completed by Yarra Valley Water at Brushy Creek sewage treatment plant in Melbourne, Victoria. The upgrade also includes the refurbishment of six 2ML storage tanks which must first be individually cleaned and emptied.

Pat McCafferty, Managing Director of Yarra Valley Water, said that the huge tanks are an important part of the plant, providing vital storage and treatment capacity when needed.

“As the plant treats up to 13 million litres of sewage every day, it is important that we only take one tank off line at a time so that we can still treat all of the incoming sewage. Upgrading the plant and updating the aeration and ultra violet treatment systems will mean that we can process the sewage more effectively,” said Mr McCafferty.

$9 million is being invested in upgrades to the Brushy Creek sewage treatment plant and an additional $2 million is being used to upgrade local sewerage pipes and new recycled water pipelines. The Brushy Creek sludge pump station which will pump sewage to the Melbourne metropolitan sewage system will also be upgraded as part of the project. Improvements to the sewage system in Croydon and Chirnside Park will provide recycled water to new developments in the area.

Construction of the new sewerage and recycled water pipes is taking place between the Brushy Creek Sewage Treatment Plant along the Maroondah Highway and into Dorset Road.

“The existing 3km sewerage pipes are due for replacement as part of the project. We are working closely with Maroondah City Council to put traffic management in place so that as little disruption as possible occurs while the work is carried out. Some aspects of the work will be very visible on main roads so I would like to thank members of the public for their patience and understanding during this time,” said Mr McCafferty.

Pipeline construction is expected to be completed later this year, subject to weather and favourable ground conditions, with the remaining Brushy Creek sewage treatment plant upgrade works to be completed over the next two years.