Sewer relining complete in Foster, Leongatha and Korumburra

Wednesday, December 16th, 2020

CCTV is not just for catching crooks. South Gippsland Water uses it to look down pipes, with the advantage of not having to dig all of them up.

South Gippsland Water Managing Director Philippe du Plessis said the CCTV identified ‘hot spots’ due to broken pipes, caused by things like root infestation or groundwater infiltration. This works alongside our traditional methods of identifying blockages during operations.

“This year we inspected sewer mains in Foster, Leongatha and Korumburra to identify which ones needed rehabilitation or repair,” he said.

“I’m pleased to let residents know that the follow-up rehabilitation work in these towns is now complete. We undertake these works every year across our system, to ensure you continue to receive a quality wastewater service.

“We re-line pipes as the most cost-effective way of repairing sewer mains without needing to dig or excavate, which can be difficult, disruptive to our communities, and expensive.

“We use a structural liner, think of putting a new pipe into an old pipe, to restore its function. It adds a 50-year lifespan to the asset.”

A continuous piece of PVC liner is used in the process, meaning there are no joints which may break in the future.

The process involves cleaning each pipe before installing the new liner. After installation, the liner is pressurised with hot steam, so it expands against the wall of the existing pipe. When cool, the plastic returns to a rigid pipe, fully sealing the sewer.

This year we installed around 7,000 metres of liners to pipes in Leongatha, Foster, and Korumburra, as part of our annual program outlined under our price, service, future plan.