South East Water has installed 340 metres of new pipeline in the first phase of a new £8.1 million project to upgrade an old leaking water main in Kent since work began on 5 January.
The project - deemed one of the most complex water main installation schemes the water company has ever carried out - will provide a more reliable water supply to the residents of Maidstone and the surrounding area once complete.
On 10 February the Company carried out its first complex crossing which involved laying the new pipe under a stream in Leybourne Lakes Country Park while keeping the stream flowing.
Chris Love, Delivery Manager at South East Water, said:
“To ensure there was minimal disruption to the stream’s water flow we laid a pipe along the middle of the stream. Following that we filled two large bags with water and placed them over our temporary pipe to create a dam.
“We then dug down below the base of the stream and below our temporary pipe which was keeping the stream flowing and fed the new pipe through.
“It was our first big test on this project and all went according to plan.”
Ahead of the work taking place South East Water carried out extensive environmental work and grass stripping to discourage animals, such as water voles, from living along the route of the new water main.
The firm expects to have installed one kilometre of water main through Leybourne Lakes Country Park by the end of February
The second phase of construction will then start in the spring in Bushey Wood near the villages of Burham and Eccles.
The old pipeline buried beneath Burham Marshes has burst nine times over the past four years and because of its location is extremely difficult to fix.
Chris Love continued:
“We have spent years looking at the best route for this new water pipe, the installation of which is one of the most complex water main projects we have ever carried out.
“Later this year our engineers and contractor, Farrans Construction, will be sliding the new water main under the River Medway, the M20 motorway and a railway line without motorists or commuters being affected.”
Once complete, the new pipe will link into South East Water’s existing water main network ensuring water can reach Maidstone, Larkfield, Leybourne, Snodland and Aylesford far more easily.
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