- ASpect’s Client: John Wilson and Partners (now WhorleyParsons)
- Head Client: ACTEW Corporation
- Plant Configuration: MLE
- Plant Size: 450,000 EP
- Project Value: $56M (ASpect Fee $211k)
- Project Duration: August 2006 to June 2009
Detailed Design and Documentation for the 450,000 EP Lower Molonglo WPCC Stage 1 and 2 augmentation (MLE), with John Wislon and Partners (now WhorleyParsons) for Actew Corporation and ActewAGL (now ACTEW Water) (ACT).
LMWQCC services the vast majority of Canberra, and discharges to the Murrumbidgee River catchment. At over 450,000 EP, it is one of the largest inland treatment plants in Australia. LMWQCC is a unique plant, combining advanced activated sludge with chemically assisted primary treatment to create a low footprint facility. This is combined with tertiary filtration to meet the tight nutrient removal requirements of the catchment. The capacity of the facility was found to be stretched during wet weather. A capacity upgrade was urgently required. The detailed design solution was implemented within difficult constraints including, footprint constraints, rock, a live plant short of spare capacity, live construction and cut-ins, and a very tight budgetary constraint. The solution comprised conversion to MLE, new anoxic selector and swing zone, methanol dosing, additional aeration tanks, additional clarifiers, upgraded RAS and new MLE pumping. The aim was to provide expansion for growth of over 25%, increased wet weather capacity by over 300%, and a 40% reduction in total nitrogen loads discharged to the Murray-Darling Basin. The project was delivered in three phases; peer review of concept, followed by detailed design and documentation.
