New wastewater treatment plant for Point Lookout

A new wastewater treatment plant is in the pipeline for Point Lookout, Queensland, to be built on the existing wastewater treatment plant site and due to be completed by mid-2015.

Point Lookout’s current wastewater treatment plant needs to be upgraded to cater for growth in the community, as well as providing a higher standard of wastewater treatment.

Redland City Council has undertaken extensive environmental and engineering modelling, as well as consultation with key community stakeholders, to decide the best location, treatment option, and wastewater disposal method for the new plant.

The new facility will result in wastewater being treated to a much higher quality, helping to further protect North Stradbroke Island’s unique environment.

The current wastewater treatment plant is more than 30 years old, is at its limit during peak holiday periods, and is nearing its ‘use by’ date. The new wastewater treatment plant will be required to meet strict environmental and odour conditions. It will also reduce turbidity (ensuring better clarity) and improve the removal of nutrients in effluent. Specialised odour treatment systems will be incorporated into the plant’s design to ensure there is no odour nuisance to surrounding areas including neighbouring houses.

It is also expected that the construction phase of the project will bring direct and indirect benefits to the local economy.

When the plant is commissioned, Council has plans to extend the current Point Lookout sewerage system to include the remaining parts of the township still using septic systems, again bringing considerable environmental benefits to landholders.

The new plant will use Membrane Bioreactor (MBR) technology. MBR’s consist of fine screening, denitrification, and nitrification zones, chemical phosphorous removal, which is then followed by membrane treatment and disinfection.

This proven technology will provide the best outcome for residents in terms of the quality of effluent treatment, operability, maintenance, and costs.

Once effluent has been treated, the resulting wastewater will be infused into the sand. This will be done on site and will involve the treated effluent being infused by gravity to a depth of approximately 80m.

The new plant will eliminate the need for the raw sewerage balance ponds and ensure a higher quality effluent will slowly filter into the sand.

Existing pump stations will also be upgraded to ensure reliability and capacity to meet expected future sewerage connections. Construction of the plant should be complete by the end of 2016.

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