Toowoomba Wastewater Infrastructure Projects (TWIP)

Toowoomba Regional Council has a number of major wastewater infrastructure projects to be delivered before December 2012. 

The Toowoomba Wastewater Infrastructure Projects (TWIP) comprise:

• Highfields sewage pumping station and transfer main to Wetalla Water Reclamation Facility (WRF)
• Glenvale sewage pumping station and transfer main
• Westbrook sewage pumping station and transfer main to the Kooringa Valley pumping station
• Mt Kynoch Water Treatment Plant sludge thickener, and
• Western Trunk Sewerage Scheme incorporating sewage pump stations at Oakey, Kingsthorpe, Gowrie Junction and Kooringa Valley, with transfer mains from Oakey via Kingsthorpe, Gowrie Junction and Kooringa Valley to Wetalla WRF.

Using an Early Contractor Involvement project delivery methodology, council awarded the $52 million contract for construction of the TWIP projects to a joint venture partnership comprising Monadelphous Engineering Pty Ltd and Transfield Services (Australia) Pty Ltd (MTS JV).

Amalgamation of eight former local governments to form the Toowoomba Regional Council in 2008 led to a review and planned rationalisation of the region's sewerage systems and provided the opportunity to upgrade and improve services to cater for development in the area. 

Background to the projects

To cater for projected growth in Highfields, council identified the need to decommission the wastewater treatment plant at Browne Road, Highfields and to divert all sewage treated at this plant to the Wetalla WRF.

A new sewage transfer scheme is required to transfer sewage from the developing suburb of Glenvale, Toowoomba to the trunk sewer network that conveys sewage to  Wetalla WRF.

To cater for growth in Westbrook, a new sewage pump station will be constructed at Westbrook with a transfer main to the Kooringa Valley sewage pump station which will then pump the sewage to Wetalla WRF for treatment.  An existing temporary wastewater treatment plant at Westbrook which is operating at capacity, will be decommissioned when the new pump station and transfer main are commissioned.

Council has also included the construction of a sludge thickener and associated works at Mt Kynoch Water Treatment Plant (WTP) to improve the treatment process and operational efficiencies.

Following damage to the Oakey wastewater treatment plant caused by the flooding events of December 2010 and January 2011, council decided to convey sewage from Oakey to the Wetalla WRF for treatment rather than construct a new wastewater treatment plant to replace the aged and under-performing Oakey plant. 

The Western Trunk Sewerage Scheme includes a new sewage pump station at Oakey with intermediate sewage pump stations at Kingsthorpe, Gowrie Junction and Kooringa Valley.  The scheme will ultimately transfer sewage from existing, approved and proposed developments in Oakey, the Cotswold Hills area (Kooringa Valley, Cotswold Cascades developments), Torrington, Glenvale, Charlton industrial area and the proposed Kingsthorpe/Gowrie Junction sewerage schemes to the Wetalla WRF.

MTS JV has established an office in Toowoomba as a base for its construction activities.  Construction site works will commence late 2011 and subject to the weather, completion of the projects is scheduled for:

• Highfields sewage transfer scheme                        June 2012
• Glenvale sewage transfer scheme                         June 2012
• Mt Kynoch WTP sludge thickener                         June 2012
• Westbrook sewage transfer scheme                     September 2012
• Western Trunk Sewerage Scheme                       September 2012

As part of their construction activities, MTS JV will keep local residents and stakeholders potentially impacted by the work informed of progress by way of letterbox drops, personal contact and project signage.

Enquiries regarding construction should be directed to MTS JV telephone number displayed on their project signage.

While council regrets any inconvenience caused during the construction works, completion of this essential infrastructure is necessary to provide modern, safe wastewater systems for our community.