Mount Beauty Raw Water Offtake |
We are seeking community feedback on the alternative design configurations.
North East Water is planning the construction of a new raw water offtake to ensure the safety and security of Mount Beauty's water supply. A raw water offtake is infrastructure where raw water is taken from a water source (usually a river) and pumped to a nearby water treatment plant before being returned to the community as clean, safe drinking water. Mount Beauty's existing raw water offtakes were constructed during the 1970s and have now outlived their operational lifespan.
Over the past two years, the Mount Beauty Community and Key Agency Reference Group was involved in an extensive independent assessment and analysis of nine proposed sites which determined that Embankment Drive is the most suitable location for the raw water offtake. This decision was based on several key factors including greater water security, reduced bushfire risk, improved operability and constructability, and would be more cost effective for customers.
Throughout the assessment process, the reference group actively participated and provided valuable input and feedback which included concerns over the need for a weir and the visual impact of a pump station.
In response to these concerns, our design consultant has now developed three alternative configurations for a raw water offtake on Embankment Drive. The reference group is largely supportive of these alternative options without a weir.
To give you an idea of how a raw water offtake could look on Embankment Drive, we have developed these visualisations.
We are now seeking community feedback on the options below.