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WQ.311/2019
WRITTEN QUESTION TO THE MINISTER FOR INFRASTRUCTURE BY THE DEPUTY OF ST. JOHN
ANSWER TO BE TABLED ON TUESDAY 16th JULY 2019
Question
Will the Minister –
- advise whether he will seek for inclusion in the forthcoming Island Plan an extension of mains drains, as a phased programme, to all areas within the Island that are currently not serviced;
- commit to negotiating with Jersey Water with a view to achieving a similar extension of the fresh water mains system over the period of the forthcoming Island Plan; and
- if he is unable to make such commitments to accommodate these projects within the ten years of the next Island Plan, explain why he is unable to do so?
Answer
- The Waste Water Strategy which I took to the states in 2014 is the principal policy document highlighting where my department should invest in terms of liquid waste infrastructure. This Strategy does cover extensions to the drainage system, however capacity throughout the system needs to be increased first. The approval of this strategy has enabled us to fund a new sewage treatment works as the old plant is coming to the end of its useful life and cannot cope with any additional flows or extensions. I visited the site of new sewage treatment works last Friday and construction is well underway with a completion date for the plant in 2023.
As well as a new treatment works it was highlighted that the existing drainage network also needs increased capacity before a mains drainage extension programme can take place. In order to achieve this increased capacity in the foul sewer network we need to carry out schemes to prevent water infiltration together with surface water separation schemes, this will take a number of years to complete.
Since 2014 when I took this proposition to the States we have now increased our connection rate to 91% of properties. I am very pleased to see this increase.
The Island Plan is an overarching plan for the Island which will advise us on where additional waste water flows may arise from.
We do not currently have funding for network extensions however I have requested additional funding in the next government plan to progress a foul sewer extension programme.
- Officers of my department do liaise with Jersey Water and other utilities on a regular basis to discuss the possibility of using shared trenches to reduce costs. However it is not always feasible as sewers are required to be laid on a gradient whereas pressurised water mains and other utilities can be routed in many different ways.
- As previously explained we would like to expand the network, however we will need to free up capacity in the existing foul sewer network first and also await the increased treatment capacity at the new Bellozanne sewage treatment works. It is expected to take up to ten years for all of these works to be achieved.
Notes:
Connection rate for properties of 87% in 2014 compared to the 91% today. Connection rate has increased due to new developments not foul sewer extensions. Cost of new STW 79.9 million.
We will need to prioritise network extensions according to environmental gain, network capacity and
cost per property as unfortunately this can be very costly with the average scheme costing in excess of £30,000 per property.