Business Central September 2021

12 | “Omāroro is a critical part of Wellington Water’s plan to improve the resilience of the region’s water supply network and increase water storage in case of a disaster.” Safeguarding city’s water supply T T Karen Phelps Omāroro is a joint project between Wellington Water, Wellington City Council and and the Greater Wellington Regional Council. Wellington Water / HEB Construction: Omāroro Reservoir DEVELOPMENT T he future security of Wellington CBD’s water supply is being safe guarded with the Omāroro Reservoir Project. Once completed, the reservoir will more than double the water storage for Wellington’s central business district area and low-lying suburbs to improve operational and disaster resilience. Omāroro involves constructing a 35 million litre buried concrete reservoir in the Prince of Wales Park in the Town Belt and connecting it to the existing water supply with a supporting new pipeline corridor along Wallace Street. The project also involves renewing local water supplies, stormwater and wastewater pipes in the area. Omāroro is a joint project between Welling - ton Water, Wellington City Council and and the Greater Wellington Regional Council. The project is led by Wellington Water, which manages the city’s drinking water, stormwater and wastewater on behalf of Wel- lington City Council. Wellington Water’s General Manager of Net- work Development and Delivery Tonia Haskell says climate change means more intense rainfall and hotter summers. This paired with population growth, will result in more pressure being placed on Wel- lington’s water supply. “Omāroro is one part of an overriding strat - egy from source to tap, which encompasses how people value and use the region’s water,” says Tonia. “In addition, Omāroro is a critical part of Wellington Water’s plan to improve the resil- ience of the region’s water supply network and increase water storage in case of a disaster. “It’s important for a city to have enough water stored to allow for at least two days of normal use and to enable repairs, main- tenance and upgrades to be done without disrupting supply. “That’s called operational resilience and right now our city’s storage capacity is not up to scratch. The city’s water supply network is also vulnerable. Underground pipes and reservoirs could be badly damaged in a signifi - cant earthquake and as a result some suburbs could be without drinking water for more than 100 days.” Tonia says that Omāroro is a unique pro - ject, which, will have major benefits for the region. She acknowledges the huge communi- ty support. “We are building in suburban Wellington, so the community is playing a major part in the success of the project. “They have been fantastic and very involved in some of the decisions as to how we operate the site to minimise disruption. “A Community Reference Group has been set up as a forum for active community and stakeholder involvement during the construc- tion phase.” Initially, while the contractors set about planning out how to cut away the hillside and build the new storage tank, students from Wellington High School, community volunteers and contractors built four lizard habitats using the region’s finest logs, soil and leaf litter in an area overlooking their old home. The native lizards were rehomed, and the team took care not to disturb any nesting birds in trees, before the vegetation was cleared in the section of town belt. Tonia says eventually the reservoir will be buried in the hillside, backfilled and the area replanted with natives and restored to a state very similar to how it was before work began. “All the excavated material is being stored on site without needing to transport it away. This reduced a significant level of truck move - ments through the local roads and meant the project team could excavate more efficiently. This has shaved significant time off the project timeline.” Construction of the base slab is currently underway and is being undertaken in two parts due to the huge amount of concrete involved. At the same time wall panels and columns are being prefabricated on site, again, to help reduce traffic disruptions and truck movements on local roads, and will be erected later this year. “Looking after the environment is really important to us,” says Tonia. “We are very proud to be doing this work on behalf of Wellington and Wellingtonians.”