BALUDARRI WETLANDS PATHWAY PARRAMATTA RIVER
Parramatta City Council engaged Central Coast Plumbing Pty Ltd for the construction of a new off-road pathway over the Baludarri Wetlands. The constructed pathway will form part of a cycle way link along the Parramatta River. Ultimately the shared path of almost 1km connects the Parramatta city centre and existing foreshore path through Rangihou Reserve with the University of Western Sydney campus at Rydalmere.
The construction of this path is part of an 11.4km project which will connect Westmead, Parramatta, Meadowbank and Sydney Olympic Park when completed and further promote cycling and walking throughout Western Sydney.
“The opening of the Baludarri Wetlands pathway marks a new milestone for Western Sydney and allows more residents and visitors to visit and enjoy the river foreshore,” said Parramatta MP Geoff Lee.
The Baludarri wetlands are a significant historical site and this is well published in the Baludarri Wetland – Wetland Plan of Management 2010, prepared by Applied Ecology Pty Ltd for the Parramatta City Council and CMA Sydney Metropolitan Catchment Management Authority. Interestingly it was noted in this report that “Stormwater runoff from increased urban areas has increased sedimentation, levels of nutrients and dispersal of litter which has added to the flow and water quality issues of the river. Additionally poor quality stormwater favours the establishment and growth of exotic plants over native species”.
In this report the author recommends the installation of end of pipe stormwater primary treatment systems to remove bulk solids from the stormwater before it enters the reserve itself. It suggest that these are easy to install and maintain, and can be quickly retrofitted to existing pipes.
Subsequently Ecosol Pty Ltd was consulted to provide cost efficient, easily maintainable primary stormwater treatment solutions as part of the projects Water Sensitive Urban Design. It was determined that a combination of the Ecosol Litter Baskets and Ecosol Net Tech products were the preferred solution for the project.
Ecosol subsequently designed, manufactured and installed the following primary treatment solutions for the project:
- Two (2) Ecosol Litter Baskets in April 2014;
- Two (2) 525 dia. Net Techs in May 2014; and
- One (1) 600 dia. Net Tech in June 2014.
The components were manufactured at Ecosol’s manufacturing facility in Pooraka, South Australia. When required each component was systematically transported to site for immediate installation on site adhering to all site protocol and WHS requirements.
The Ecosol Net Tech was selected as it is a robust pre-screening net filtration system for use where there were cost or space constraints. It captures more than 91% of solids larger than 19mm.
Although in many cases treatment of pollutants as close as possible to the source is preferred there are many situations where in-line, or end-of-line, treatment is more appropriate and this is where Ecosol’s award-winning Net Tech Solid Pollutant Filter and its Net Guard and Trash Rack systems are often seen as more effective solutions.
