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North East Water will begin commissioning a $2.4 million upgrade to Beechworth's water treatment plant later this month. The upgrade will increase the plant's maximum output by 30% and allow it to treat a wider range of raw water quality, but may result in water restrictions in Beechworth during the one-month commissioning phase. North East Water Senior Engineer, Tony Belcher, said the commissioning process would limit output from the plant. "If demand levels look likely to exceed the limited supply during the commissioning period, we may need to apply simple restriction measures to limit usage, and we will keep the community fully informed on this." Specialist contractor Water Treatment Australia has been working since April to convert the plant process to a mixture of dissolved air floatation and filtration. Mr Belcher said the plant's previous direct filtration process had limitations that had been highlighted by the 2003 bushfires. "This change to the plant has been necessary to allow raw water to be treated regardless of its quality," he said. "Algae regularly affects raw water quality in North East Victoria, and the 2003 bushfires also highlighted the risks associated with deteriorated raw water quality. "Beechworth's water is supplied from Lake Kerford, whose catchment was burnt during the bushfires, resulting in large amounts of ash and silt being washed into the lake." Mr Belcher said that while the existing plant had been able to deliver treated water of excellent quality, it was largely due to the work of attentive operators. "The upgraded plant will allow less chemical dosing to the raw water and a more automated process, while providing a more reliable water quality output," he said. The upgrade has been funded as part of North East Water's $15 million annual capital works program. Mr Belcher said it was important for Beechworth residents to abide by the new water conservation by-law in place all year round in North East Victoria. The by-law comprises three simple measures designed to reduce water wastage:
Monday, 15 November 2004 |