Winter was a productive time in the Macalister Irrigation District, and Southern Rural Water (SRW) delivered several essential maintenance projects.
Nuntin was a key focus of works, which saw the replacement of an existing 600mm siphon, the upgrade of two road crossings and work to upgrade regulators that were no longer fit for purpose.
General Manager of Service Delivery, Simon Wilkinson, said the Nuntin projects would improve customer service.
“Replacing the siphon and upgrading the road crossing at Inverbroom Road will remove bottlenecks in the network and improve downstream flows for customers.
“We have also installed four regulator gates in Nuntin that will reduce manual operation and improve the operation of the channel system. More broadly, we have replaced another four gates across the district as part of a rolling three-year replacement program,” he said.
In other district areas, SRW has completed Stage 1B modernisation decommissioning works in Tinamba and constructed an access crossing at the Main Southern Channel.
SRW has also automated 80 customer outlets in the district, which will deliver a more efficient channel network and reduce customers’ inconvenience.
SRW has completed a comprehensive inspection of the Cowwarr Weir offtake tunnel. This 180m-long underground tunnel moves water from Cowwarr Weir to the Cowwarr channel and finally to the Nambrok-Denison Main channel.
The inspection SRW has allowed to assess the tunnel’s condition and identify preventative measures to extend its lifespan and reliability.
Channel maintenance
SRW has completed significant channel maintenance over winter to ensure the network is ready for another strong season. These works included the following:
- 40km of channel treated for submerged weeds
- 3km of desilting and cleaning of the channel near Sale
- 13km of desilting and cleaning channels in Nambrok
- Network assessments to improve the signal coverage between our nodes to support ongoing communications
- Communication and Control updates (software) at more than 30 sites across the district
SRW knows some customers experienced delays last season and acknowledges their are frustration. Throughout last season, SRW’s planners worked with customers to secure orders within its system capacity constraints and find availability within the channel as best they could. They will do the same again this year.
This season, SRW will be implementing the following improvements:
- Re-tuning its control systems in several channel areas to improve the consistency of pool heights that help its customers’ flow consistency
- Creating new reports and giving its planners new tools to improve the efficiency of planning operations, particularly during high-demand periods
- Moving to a new meter reading application for field staff, which provides better data validation of readings as they are entered
- Further review of operational rules and models to ensure the most equitable delivery to all district customers
These improvements have been informed by a wide-ranging review of SRW’s channel system operations and recommendations by expert consultants to identify further efficiencies and improvements.
Other recommendations in the review require further investigation before SRW can implement them.
SRW looks forward to another productive season and getting water to where it’s needed as quickly and efficiently as possible.
Image: Greg Brave/stock.adobe.com
