Watercare is set to start six months of flood recovery repairs on Auckland’s north shore using horizontal directional drilling.
The works follow last year’s Auckland floods which caused extensive damage and destroyed water and wastewater infrastructure across the network.
The new permanent repairs will replace nine temporary bypasses that were first put in place after the flooding.
Now, over the next few months, Watercare will reconnect infrastructure to 182 households on Emlyn Place, Torbay and Braemar Road, Castor Bay, using horizontal directional drilling (HDD).
“The bypass solutions currently servicing these areas will be replaced with wastewater pipes installed underground using HDD to protect them from future slips and flooding,” Watercare asset upgrades and renewals general manager Suzanne Lucas said.
“This drilling method will enable crews to install the pipeline directly underneath the roading and footpath network without causing too much soil disturbance or environmental damage.”
Lateral connections will also take place, according to Lucas.
“These lateral connections will be hand dug at the point of connection to the properties,” she said.
“Once the pipeline and lateral connections have been installed, our crews will then reroute the flow of the wastewater network to make better use of the new pipes and the existing wastewater network.”
Once those works have finished, the team will turn to Dalmeny Close and Bellbird Rise in Murray’s Bay, Lynn Road in Bayview for similar repairs.
“This will see another 337 permanently reconnected back into the local wastewater network,” Lucas said.
All works are expected to be completed by the end of January 2025.
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