One of the drainage nets.
Camera IconOne of the drainage nets. Credit: Supplied/Supplied

Drainage nets prove successful for City of Kwinana

Vanessa SchmittWeekend Kwinana Courier

THE City of Kwinana’s success with drainage nets in Henley Reserve has proved popular on social media.

The City posted about the drainage nets on Facebook on Saturday and the post was reached by 2.5 million people in 48 hours.

The post highlighted the success of the City’s efforts to reduce the discharge of rubbish from drainage systems.

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The nets prevent gross pollutants and solid waste being discharged into nature reserves.

Two nets were installed in March 2018 and have collected 370kg of debris.

Mayor Carol Adams said the overwhelming response to the City’s post was not surprising considering the passionate support the City receives from the community in relation to environmental initiatives.

Mayor Adams said the nets were embraced on a global level with the post being shared by an eco-activist with a large following on Facebook.

“We know that the Kwinana community is very passionate about environmental initiatives and rallies around actions with positive environmental impact and if it was not for the drainage nets, 370kg of debris would have ended up in our reserve,” she said.

“The nets are placed on the outlet of two drainage pipes, which are located between residential areas and natural areas.

“This allows the nets to capture the gross pollutants carried by storm water from the local road network before those pollutants are discharged and contaminate the natural environment at the downstream end of the outlet area.

“This ensures that the habitat of the local wildlife is protected and minimizes the risk of wildlife being caught in the nets.

“To date no wildlife has been caught up in either of the City’s nets.

“After seeing the nets in action in other local government areas, the City determined the net to be the most cost effective and safest option for wildlife over other methods such as underground gross pollutant traps which can be up to four times the cost per unit and are sealed and submerged structures.”

The nets cost the City just under $20,000 which included the cost of design, manufacture, installation and associated civil works for the two units. The nets are expected to realise considerable cost savings in labour intensive work previously required to collect the rubbish scattered around the reserve by hand.

The return on capital investment will be realised in the short term as well as cleaner reserves, higher efficiency and improved safety outcomes.

Council staff can easily lift and empty the nets into a truck by machinery.

The waste is then transported to a sorting facility which processes the waste and converts the green waste to mulch and separates the recyclable/non-recyclable materials.

“The success of the post with over 27k shares, 92k likes and 13k loves in just 48 hours from people all over the world, just goes to show how important it is for government at all levels to really start to focus on environmental initiatives such as these and realise that small actions can have big impacts,” Mayor Adams said.