Residents in the north eastern suburbs are a step closer to saving hundreds of dollars a year and receiving better wastewater services with the City of Tea Tree Gully agreeing to the Marshall Liberal Government’s sewerage transition plan.
Major works can now begin to transfer around 4,700 properties from the ageing 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 now 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.
Minister for Environment and Water David Speirs said north eastern suburbs residents would be relieved to now 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,” Minister 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 now 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.
“Unfortunately, the former Labor Government sat on its hands for 16 years ignoring residents in the north east. Liberal Member for Newland Richard Harvey has been advocating on this issue since he was elected in 2018 and he is successfully delivering a solution for the local community.
“We will now work constructively with the City of Tea Tree Gully to get residents transitioned across to SA Water as quick as practically possible and at no extra cost to residents.”
Member for Newland Richard Harvey welcomed the agreement from the City of Tea Tree Gully.
“This means we can start getting on with this important project which will deliver lower costs and a better service to residents in the north east,” Dr Harvey said.
“The former government put this issue in the ‘too hard’ basket for more than a decade and only started to take interest when it became politically convenient. Now we are hearing pie-in-the-sky promises just before an election.
“Our transition plan represents an orderly, efficient, well-designed roll out of services that prioritises the most-affected customers.
“Only the Marshall Liberal Government can be trusted to deliver this project and I am proud to be delivering this solution for my local community.”
The overall project will be done in three stages, with prioritisation based on a range of criteria. This includes 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.
People can also find up-to-date project information, and provide feedback at any time at watertalks.sawater.com.au
