The NSW Government has detailed more of the pump station refurbishments underway in the flood-prone city of Lismore.
The Magellan Street pump station, which previously saw a tractor-driven pump manually remove around 600 litres of localised floodwater per second, is being replaced by two submersible systems with a combined capacity of 1000 litres per second.
This follows repeated flood events in recent years (including a record event in February 2022 that peaked at 14.36m in height), which overwhelmed the ageing network and flooded the CBD.
“Upgrading Magellan Street pump station is a critical step in strengthening Lismore’s flood resilience,” Lismore mayor Steve Krieg said.
“Replacing the old, tractor-driven system with modern, remotely operated pumps will allow council to respond faster and keep staff out of harm’s way when conditions are at their worst.”
Further works will follow at the Browns Creek pump station – the centrepiece of the flood defence network – where a new pump station is being built alongside the existing facility. This will see four submersible pumps deliver four-to-five times the power of the existing two systems.
The Browns Creek pump station was first built in the 1960s to extract stormwater from the low-lying Lismore basin into the Wilsons River.
Other pump station upgrades include developments at Lower Hollingsworth Creek – where improved screening is being installed – and the Gasworks pump station, with the latter finished late last year. Each pump station is being supported by a new 10km fibre-optic network to enable remote operation and monitoring.
These works form part of a $29.8 million modernisation of Lismore’s flood pump station network, under the NSW and Federal Government-funded Northern Rivers Recovery and Resilience Program (NRRRP).
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