By Kate Lockyer
Urban Utilities has denied plans for a sewage treatment plant despite their own diagrams labelling a proposed project in Albion as a “new sewage treatment facility”.
In last month’s Village Voice Urban Outlook column, architect Edward Haysom said an Urban Utilities Industry Briefing YouTube Video revealed this facility was to be located in the Breakfast Creek Sports Precinct proposed by the Queensland Government at Albion.
A diagram from the video was also published, where the facility was labelled as a “new sewage treatment facility built to be co-located with the proposed Olympic stadium venue”.
Mr Haysom wrote: “The plans show storage tanks immediately adjacent to the residential properties accompanied by a drawing note that says: ‘odour, noise and visual aesthetics will be key drivers for the design’.”
Mr Haysom advocated for a masterplan for Albion to give residents certainly and clarity on what they can expect.
Urban Utilities have instead announced a proposed water harvesting facility to be delivered as part of the government’s Breakfast Creek Sports Precinct.
A spokesperson said water harvesting involves purifying stormwater and wastewater to a high level to be used for activities such as cooling, toilet flushing and the irrigation of sporting fields and green spaces.
Wastewater includes the water that comes from bathrooms, (including sewage from toilets, sinks and showers), laundries and kitchens and businesses.
The facility would be used for “drought-proof” irrigation of the sporting fields with purified, recycled water from the water harvesting facility.
Urban Utilities Executive Leader of Integrated Solutions Chris Bulloch said water efficiency was a part of the sustainability commitments for the Brisbane 2032 Olympic and Paralympic Games.
“We’re keen to play our part by providing sustainable water and wastewater infrastructure that will serve our community well into the future,” he said.
“The benefits of the proposed state-of-the-art water harvesting facility will last long after 2032, with the high-quality recycled water to be used for irrigating fields and green spaces, even during times of extended drought.
“With our drinking water supplies under pressure from population growth and climate changes, it makes sense to increase our use of recycled water to ease pressure on our region’s dams.”
The proposal includes a wet weather facility which would help make the network more resilient to flooding and wet weather events.
“We live in a climate of extremes in South East Queensland and during heavy rain, stormwater can infiltrate our wastewater network causing wet weather overflows,” Mr Bulloch said.
“The facility will help us manage increased flows in our network during heavy rain, reducing impacts to private properties in low-lying areas.”
Mr Bulloch said there would also be opportunities for community education and engagement in the precinct with a proposed visitor centre to celebrate the urban water cycle.
“The visitor centre would be Brisbane’s first demonstration facility to showcase how purified recycled water is produced and used to support sustainable greening and cooling,” he said.
Photo Caption: A diagram from an Urban Utilities Industry Briefing YouTube Video depicting the proposed “sewage treatment facility”
What do you think of a water harvesting facility in Albion?
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