Welsh Water is to invest £2.5 million to upgrade the wastewater system in Nant Talwg, Barry which will help to protect the environment in the area for years to come.
The company plans to install a brand new pipe from Nant Talwg pumping station, across private land to the rear of Ffordd Cwm Cidi, Fforest Drive and Lon Ferm Felin before connecting in to the existing network on Glamorgan Street Barry.
Work will begin on 18th February and will see around a kilometre of wastewater pipe - which has almost reached the end of its operational life - being replaced.
To avoid going through the housing estate where the current pipe is located, Welsh Water has liaised with the local authority to agree a new route across their land.
Work will involve removing some trees to clear a path for the new pipe through the wooded area at the rear of Ffordd Cwm Cidi. This work will start in mid-February to avoid the bird nesting season.
It is anticipated that the work will be completed towards the end of August.
Welsh Water’s Programme Delivery Manager, Teresa O’Neil said “At Welsh Water, we are committed to ensuring we provide an effective wastewater system which gives customers a first class service and protects our valuable environment. Our work at Nant Talwg reflects our commitment to reinvest profits for the benefit of customers and the environment.
“We always want to make sure our customers know what we are doing when we are working in their community so we have written to local residents to tell them about the work. We will also be holding a public drop-in event on the 31st of January 2019 at the Millwood Bowling Club. Customers can drop in anytime between 2:30pm and 7pm where our team will be on hand to answer any questions they may have about the work.
“The work will involve removing some trees to ensure that the pipe can be laid in an area free from roots which could damage the pipe in the future. Any woodland, hedgerow or grassland habitat which needs to be removed will be replaced with a similar species in the surrounding area, as well as additional species to benefit the wildlife. We will be replanting in the autumn 2019 as this is the optimum planting time.
“The work will be monitored by ecologists to ensure that, should any protected species be found on site, they will not be adversely affected. The work programme may however need to be extended should any protected species be found during the course of the work but we will ensure that we keep our customers up to date with any changes.
“We appreciate that this kind of work can cause some inconvenience but we will do all we can to keep this to a minimum and would like to thank people for bearing with us whilst we undertake these essential works.”
Melanie Stewart, Site Ranger Porthkerry Country Park said ‘’ We liaised closely with Welsh Water to make sure that their work will not have any detrimental effect on the local environment.’’