Final phase of £5m. drainage project

Monday 29 July 2019

Guernsey Water has started the fourth and final phase of an extensive drainage improvement project around St Sampson’s Harbour.

This phase will see upgrades made to the 17m deep pumping station at the southern edge of St Sampson's Harbour, which transfers sewer flows from large parts of the Vale and St Sampson’s onwards to the wastewater centre at Belle Greve.

“Although the upgrading of the station sounds simple when compared to previous phases of the project, in order to carry out the works the station will need to be bypassed and isolated from existing sewer flows which on average measure 150 litres per second," said Mark Walker, Capital Delivery Manager for Guernsey Water. 

A temporary sewer will be installed across the entrance of St Sampson’s Harbour, under the harbour bed so as not to cause disruption to boats. Works to install it are anticipated to be carried out during a significantly low tide in August

The work represents the final stage of a significant drainage improvement project. 

“The overall aim of the project is to reduce foul water flooding and to reduce the volume of spills from the combined sewer overflows,” said Mr Walker.

“We have already seen improvements in water flow levels from the work we have completed so far and we will soon be able to assess if the work is having a positive impact on the frequency of flooding.”

The project is one of the largest in Guernsey Water’s current 10-year business plan, which was launched in April 2016, with an investment of £5 million.

Pictured top: St Sampson's Harbour.