Water & Wastewater Treatment Magazine
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www.wwtonline.co.uk | WWT | XXXX 20XX | 21 Leakage ● Water-stressed areas in the south East of England need to solve a significant demand-supply gap, both by asking customers to use less water and by losing less water through leakage ● However, the UK's ageing pipe infrastructure means that leaks are inevitable, and mains renewal programmes will take many years to refresh the entire network ● Detection time for leaks is important to make the best use of resource, and precision is important to avoid 'dry holes' where the street is dug up and no leak is found The Works JamEs BrocKEtt, EdiTor, WaTEr & WasTEWaTEr TrEaTmEnT A ffinity Water has taken leakage detection in its network to new levels by fitting 20,000 permanent acoustic loggers covering a vast swathe of its central supply area. The water-only company is in pursuit of an ambitious target of reducing leakage by 14% by 2020, as part of its 2015-20 business plan which emphasised water saving to close a projected supply- demand imbalance in the water-stressed South East. With customers being asked to save water through reduced usage, metering and water-saving devices, the company has promised to fulfil its side of the bargain by saving water lost from leaks. During this AMP period, it intends to bring leakage down by a massive 27ML per day. While leaks are inevitable in in the UK's ageing pipe infrastructure – and the utility is also investing millions into replacing pipes as part of its mains renewal programme - leak detection is a major area where technological innovation can help in the fight against water losses. If bursts and large leaks can be identified in hours rather than days or weeks, with a high degree of accuracy, then repair teams can be dispatched swiŒly and with a more focused remit, and will spend less of their time trying to pinpoint a leak or digging fruitless 'dry holes'. To this end, between January and May this year the company installed PermaNET+ acoustic loggers, made by HWM, across 25 per cent of its network that is most prone to leakage. These devices, placed at 300m intervals on distribution mains, listen for the noise of escaping water that follows a leak or burst. When such a noise is detected it transmits an alert, together with an • CHALLENGE www.wwtonline.co.uk | WWT | JUnE 2017 | 21