Barwon Water steps back in time, almost 40 years ago, and looks at when the Black Rock Ocean outfall pipe was installed.
The company shared a snippet of the majestic installation of the 1.2km long pipe, which was constructed on land and then towed out to sea with the help of barges, winches and jacks.
The devil lies in the details for that one: the video shows the final segment of the pipe, with clear instructions to “hit here Heather”.
But who is the mysterious Heather, and why should she hit a pipe?
Heather Vines, wife of then chief executive officer Geoffrey Vines, allegedly duly obliged and broke a bottle of champagne on it before it headed out to sea, according to the Barwon Water team.
The Black Rock Ocean outfall pipe was constructed by the then Geelong and District Water Board to replace an existing shoreline discharge which was first commissioned in 1916.
The pipe has been designed to handle flows beyond the year 2040 and discharges 1.2 km offshore from Black Rock into 15m depth of water.
The Black Rock Ocean outfall pipe is part of the Black Rock wastewater treatment plant, which serves much the Geelong region.
Approximately 60 megalitres of treated effluent per day is discharged through outfall pipeline offshore into Bass Strait.
The ocean outfall is about 1.2km offshore and 15m below the ocean surface.
Black Rock Water reclamation plant also produces Class C recycled water, which is used for irrigation, and Class A recycled water used to flush toilets, water gardens and wash cars in housing estates in Armstrong Creek and Torquay North. The use of this sustainable product reduces the demand on the drinking water supply.
As outlined in its Strategy 2030, Barwon Water aims to have 100 per cent of the recycled water produced at its plants put to productive re-use by 2030.
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