Water and Effluent Treatment Magazine
Issue link: https://fhpublishing.uberflip.com/i/1007297
ADVERTISEMENT FEATURE REDUCED FLOODING. IMPROVED SAFETY - Managing surface water with innovative preventative maintenance - Following a successful partnership with Surrey County Council and Stanton Bonna, Saint-Gobain PAM, the UK's leading supplier of ductile iron water and sewer pipelines, reviews the implications of road surface water and presents a first-time solution to tackle flooding. L ocated on a stretch of road known as the 'Mad Mile', the Belmont Roundabout was consistently flooding under any sustained period of rainfall. This was causing a real danger to road users, which resulted in Surrey County Council searching for a drainage solution to solve the problem. Sam Winterson, Surrey County Council, comments: "This site was particularly prone to flooding due to the inclination, which meant any rainfall flowed onto the roundabout. This flow was comprised of both water and a large amount of silt which would all gather at the low point of the roundabout". Flooding is a major issue for many roadways in the United Kingdom. Heavy rainfall can surpass drainage limitations on many networks, leading to system surcharges, flooded roads and dangerous standing water. The problems are exacerbated in winter, when standing water permeates into the asphalt layer and freezes; as the water expands during freezing, it can damage the road surface, leading to time-consuming and costly repairs. The drainage systems them- selves aren't without fault. Networks located in low-lying areas often see higher flow rates as well as a quick build-up of silt and sediment, resulting in lowered performance and leading to further flooding problems. The problem is com- pounded even further due to budgetary constraints, as authorities lack the funds to perform preventa- tive maintenance. Paul Thompson, Marketing Manager at Saint-Gobain PAM, comments: "Flooding on the road networks is becoming more and more common as we see heavier rainfall due to changing climatic conditions. This can cause a serious danger to drivers, and it's important that we can provide solutions that help make travelling safe, regardless of the conditions." In order to solve the flooding problem, Surrey County Council turned to Saint-Gobain PAM and Stanton Bonna, who delivered an innovative "Super Gully" system. Combining high performance gully gratings with an increased storage capacity, the system can cope with the most severe conditions, whilst retaining low maintenance requirements, reducing the pressure on local authorities to perform preventative works. Paul Thompson at Saint-Gobain PAM, comments: "The Super Gully system is great for areas that suffer from a large amount of flooding or standing water. It's quick to install and provides a low maintenance, high capacity solution, reducing the dangers of standing water and increasing the longevity of the asphalt surface." The design has proven effective, with Sam Winterson commenting; "Since the installation of the Super Gully, there has been some quite severe rainfall and no silt or water has gathered on the roundabout. We're really pleased with the results and feel safe in the knowledge that we've significantly reduced the flooding issues on this part of the road network." wwtonline.co.uk | AUGUST 2018 WET NEWS 11