SCOTTISH WATER ABOUT TO COMPLETE PROJECT WHICH WILL ALLOW FOR GROWTH ON ISLAY

Scottish Water is about to complete an important project which will allow for growth on Islay.

The £220,000 Torra link main project, which involved the installation of 1.5km of new pipe, will alleviate some development constraints from the Torra Water Treatment Works supply zone, which includes the villages of Bowmore and Port Ellen and other smaller communities.

The Torra WTW, which serves about 1900 customers in the centre and south of Islay more than half the island’s population, was running at capacity and unable to sustain further connections.

The link main will now alleviate that and allow for more connections to be made by taking water from the Port Charlotte WTW supply zone, which serves about 600 customers in the north and west of the island.

Mr Stephen Griffen, Scottish Water’s acting regional manager, said: “We are very pleased to be completing this important project which will alleviate some development constraints on Islay.

“Scottish Water is absolutely committed to helping growth throughout Scotland, in the largest towns and cities or the smallest, most remote island communities and this investment will be of great benefit to Islay.”
More….

The project, which is the latest in a series of major investments by Scottish Water on Islay, involved the installation of new pipes in and adjacent to the village of Bridgend.

Contractors Scottish Water Contracting used a method called directional drilling for much of the project. This reduced traffic disruption and the construction time. It also minimised the amount of road haulage on and off the island and so reduced the project’s carbon footprint.

The link main was laid along the route of the A846 road corridor and some side roads in Bridgend.

Mr Stuart Flaws, the project manager, said: “The project has gone well and the directional drilling was very successful.

“We re-scheduled some of our work to suit the needs of local businesses and the Islay Whisky Tasting Festival and to minimise any disruption.

“We also carefully considered the local ecology and archaeology and the work avoided any disruption to the habitats of wildlife and protected species such as mute swans, nesting wild birds and otters and archaeological sites.”

The Torra link main project is part of Scottish Water’s 2010 Vision for Argyll & Bute, a £78m two-year programme of investment across the region. For more information visit HYPERLINK "http://www.scottishwater.co.uk/argyllandbute2010" www.scottishwater.co.uk/argyllandbute2010