The City of Tea Tree Gully has agreed to the South Australian Government’s new sewerage transition plan, with residents in Adelaide’s north eastern suburbs closer to saving hundreds of dollars a year, and receiving better services.
Major works can now begin to transfer around 4,700 properties from the aging council-run community wastewater management scheme (CWMS) to the modern SA Water sewer network – saving residents around $400 a year once complete.
More than 60 properties at pilot sites at Glenere Drive in Modbury and on nearby Dawson Drive, Angas Court and North East Road are already being connected, with preliminary construction also able to begin on stage one of the transition plan.
In this first stage of the project, around 500 households in Modbury North, St Agnes and Banksia Park will be connected by late 2022, and SA Water’s dedicated project engagement team will soon be meeting with local residents to discuss pipeline routes and local scope of works.
South Australian Minister for Environment and Water, David Speirs, said north eastern suburbs residents would be relieved to have certainty over the transition of the CWMS.
“The CWMS has been a long-standing issue for residents in the north eastern suburbs with significantly higher costs and a system which is prone to failure,” Mr Speirs said.
“The Marshall Liberal Government has committed to fix this problem once and for all at no cost to residents – saving around $400 a year and improving services for more than 12,000 people.
“For nearly two years we have been working towards delivering this commitment and it’s very pleasing the City of Tea Tree Gully has agreed to our transition plan, which means we can get on with major works.
“Pleasingly, the City of Tea Tree Gully will make a significant contribution towards the project including the greening of streets as properties are transitioned.”
Member for Newland, Richard Harvey, said, “Our transition plan represents an orderly, efficient, well-designed rollout of services that prioritises the most affected customers.”
The overall project will be done in three stages, with prioritisation based on a range of criteria.
These criterias include proximity of properties to SA Water’s existing sewer network, community feedback, alignment with upcoming council and development works, and areas with a reported history of blockages and overflows from the existing CWMS infrastructure.
For the past 18 months, SA Water has had significant engagement with the City of Tea Tree Gully community, including through letters, drop-in sessions and targeted discussions, and these conversations will continue as the program progresses, to ensure residents are kept informed and individual property needs and expectations are considered.
