Our River. Our Future

Revitalising kanamaluka/Tamar estuary

The kanamaluka/Tamar estuary is a special landscape that connects our community. We appreciate its importance to Launceston and the wider community, which is why we are making investments today to ensure its health for future generations.

As part of the Tamar Estuary River Health Action Plan (TERHAP), we are delivering new sewerage infrastructure for the city to improve the health of kanamaluka/Tamar estuary and the environment that surrounds it.

What's this project all about?

The Ti-Tree Bend Sewage Treatment Plant Covered Storage Project will involve the construction of a new network storage tank that has two compartments, an overflow tank, and a balance tank, with a combined capacity of 10 megalitres.

The future flows to these new storage tanks will be transferred via the New Sewer Pipeline we are currently building 40 metres under the estuary riverbed between our Margaret Street Pump Station and the Ti-Tree Bend Sewage Treatment Plant.

Once completed, this new storage capacity will enable us to temporarily store and buffer any incoming flows from the combined Launceston sewer system before we then transfer these flows to the existing plant for the final phase of treatment.

Project update

Since December 2023, we have been preparing the ground at our Invermay site, for the new covered storage tank.

We have now excavated well over 12,000 tonnes of materials from our site and completed the relocation of existing services to make way for the new tank.

To support the weight of the new 10 megalitre tank, we have commenced a ground improvement technique called Mass Soil Mixing (MSM). This process involves mixing the existing soil with grout, forming something resembling wet concrete. Once hardened it will provide a solid, firm surface for construction, as well as help to prevent ground water infiltration.

We have completed roughly 40% of the MSM.

Over the coming months we will continue these MSM works, and in the second half of 2024 we’ll be undertaking Continuous Flight Auga Pilling. This form of piling is a relatively quiet technique in comparison to noisy pile driving.

Towards the end of the year, we expect to complete the foundation works and then begin constructing the new 10 megalitre covered storage facility and supporting infrastructure.

The new storage tank is designed to take the flow from the New Sewer Pipeline, meaning less overflow events into the kanamaluka/Tamar Estuary.

The project is expected to be completed during 2026.