GREEN SQUARE PROVES TO BE A DRAIN ON RESOURCES
31 Jul 2013
The Green Square West Kensington (GSWK) floodplain strategy and management plan will involve the creation of a large underground drainage culvert.
City of Sydney Lord Mayor Clover Moore has moved to stop floods from pouring into the massive new Green Square precinct and surrounding areas by installing a huge underground culvert drain pipe network designed to divert waters away from areas that have traditionally been rendered a swampland.
The Green Square West Kensington (GSWK) floodplain strategy and management plan will involve the creation of a large underground drainage culvert running 2.3 kilometres through the Green Square town centre. The proposed drainage culvert will stretch from Link Road in Zetland to the Alexandra Canal, draining floodwaters away from homes, businesses and roads in and around Joynton Avenue, Lachlan Street, South Dowling Street and Botany Road. The proposed drainage works will also include stormwater quality improvement devices, such as pollutant traps and rain gardens to meet the objectives of the City’s Decentralised Water Master Plan, which aims to reduce stormwater pollutants entering water ways.
“We have a responsibility to plan for the future, and as the effects of climate change take hold we’re likely to see more extreme weather events that will put pressure on Sydney’s infrastructure,” Lord Mayor Clover Moore said.
The new waterworks are a significant development for the City’s ambitions to rejuvenate the former industrial area because the issue of flooding in some streets threatened to dampen Ms Moore’s $8 billion grand vision of eco-friendly precinct urban renewal comprising of new businesses, apartment blocks, public transport upgrades and sustainability projects.
The proposed $80 million drainage work will take up to three years to complete, and will be co-funded by Sydney Water.
