WET News

4 WET NEWS NOVEMBER NEWS+ Thames Water sets out action plan to minimise trunk mains bursts • After a spate of high profile water mains bursts, Thames Water set up an independent review to help reduce the risk of such events. T hames Water has identified 15 clear commitments to minimise the risk of burst trunk mains in the future, and to improve its response to such emergencies. The action plan is set out in the company's Trunk Mains Strategic Review, pub- lished this week, and is in direct response to the Trunk Mains Forensic Review earlier this year, led by Paul Cuttill OBE, who has more than 30 years' experience in utilities including as EDF Power Networks' chief operating officer. In the report, Thames Water said a key recommendation was that there should be an 'intensive care' period for its trunk mains assets. Through the two reviews, it has had an intense focus on these assets since December 2016 which will continue through the trunk mains implementation phase. The trunk mains imple- mentation phase will begin in earnest by October 2017. At its conclusion the changes and improvements made will be con- tinued as business as usual. The trunk mains implementa- tion phase will: Provide the focus and resource needed to implement the Trunk Mains Strategic Review commitments Satisfy the recommendation from the Trunk Mains Forensic Review Provide the necessary end to end focus on trunk mains so improvements are sustained Thames Water chief executive CONTRACT WINS Murphy is to design, build, operate and maintain major water treatment works (WTW) in Ireland, having been awarded a contract worth around €25M by Irish Water. Eric Wright Water has bagged a framework extension at Severn Trent, delivering mechanical and electrical repair works across Severn Trent's southern area assets as one of three companies appointed to the frame- work. Water and wastewater equipment supplier Ham Baker has won a series of new frameworks with water companies for its inlet screening and flow control solutions. Water firms Anglian, Scottish, Severn Trent and South- ern have all placed orders for its products. officer, Steve Robertson, said: "I fully understand how disruptive and upsetting these events have been for our customers and that's why we're determined to learn lessons. This thorough review commits us to a number of changes right across our busi- ness, many of which we've already begun to implement. We'll be communicating our action plan with affected com- munities, customers and stake- holders to ensure we're being held to the highest standards." Since December 2016, the company has been working to re-line and replace those trunk mains that burst. However, the longer term strategy is to replace the 3,200km of trunk mains, starting with those parts of the Thames' longer term strategy is to replace the 3,200km of trunk main "I fully understand how disruptive and upsetting these events have been for our cus- tomers and that's why we're deter- mined to learn lessons" Steve Robertson, Thames Water Good monthT- Bad month For 'second life' batteries from electric vehicles. Anglian's Cambridge Water Recycling Centre is using them to collect and store energy. For Scottish Water, celebrating completion of the Shieldhall Tunnel's construction in Glasgow. A giant tunnel boring machine spent 15 months creating the 3.1 mile-long sewer beneath the city. For United Utilities, having to fork out for a £300K fine and £150K additional costs over the Franklaw WTW crypto episode. Rainwater running off agricultural land grazed by livestock was the cause of the contamination. For Irish Water, as it admits having to tackle "close to 300 [water main] bursts" every month. Wastewater test could give early warning system for epidemics • Universities team up to develop a real-time community-wide public health early warning system by measuring biomarkers. N ew 'water fingerprinting' technology developed by researchers at the Univer- sity of Bath to test a city's water could soon be helping the fight against infectious diseases and antibiotic resistant 'superbugs' such as E.coli. In an internationally collabo- rative project, experts from the University of Bath and Stellen- bosch University (South Africa) are teaming up to develop a real- time community-wide public health early warning system (EWS) by measuring biomarkers – molecules made by the body that characterise disease and ill- ness – in the sewage system. Urban water contains a mix- ture of human waste, wastewa- ter and run off samples, pooled from contributing populations. To epidemiologists, this cocktail contains a treasure trove of information on the underlying health status of the population and surrounding environment. The project will combine state-of-the-art methodology in chemistry, genetics and elec- tronics to unlock this informa- tion and provide real-time health "profiles" of urban water sam- ples. This will enable govern- ment health professionals to identify early on any risks to public health and therefore attempt to mitigate potential widespread crises such as pan- demics and infectious diseases. Africa and Asia are experienc- ing unprecedented population growth and urbanisation. This exceptional speed of urbanisation and global popula- tion growth poses substantial risks to the resilience of cities in preventing widespread poor public health. Working with local organisations East Rand Water Care Company (ERWAT), Stellenbosch River Collaborative (SRC) and Enkanini Research Centre (ERC), the project will use Stellenbosch as a case study to trail this technology to under- stand the feasibility of imple- menting a EWS in South Africa and in other LMIC (Low and Middle income) countries. Lead Investigator and Profes- sor in Environment & Analytical Chemistry at the University of Bath, Barbara Kasprzyk-Hordern said: "This project focussing on Urban Water Profiling can become a truly effective, real time and low-cost local, national and ultimately global surveil- lance system enabling authori- ties to effectively identify and prevent threats to an urban pop- ulation's health." www.teekaycouplings.com tel: +44 (0)1494 679500 Need to know There is no common cause of the 31 bursts reviewed, and in particular the eight high profile bursts Thames Water has started work on 16 of the 80 Trunk Mains Forensic Review recommendations 41 of the 80 Trunk Main Forensic Review recommendations will be implemented through the trunk mains implementation phase The planned investment in the AMP6 objectives in the Thames Water Investment Strategy for Trunk Mains totalled £147M at 2012/13 prices network where the risks of defects are greatest. Sarah McMath, Thames Water managing director, water, said: "I'm confident that once deliv- ered, our action plan will improve the way we manage our trunk mains and that through collating better information about our net- work, coupled with better risk modelling, we can reduce the impact on our customers."

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