Keith Brown Scottish Parliament Cabinet Secretary for Infrastructure, Investment and Cities was in Glasgow last week to see how the transformation of some of Greater Glasgow’s most important infrastructure, including a major flooding project in Springburn, is progressing .

Scottish Water is more than half way through what will be the biggest investment in the Greater Glasgow area’s waste water infrastructure in more than a century.

Work is progressing across the area to convert the ageing infrastructure into a modern, integrated and sustainable drainage system that will improve the environment on the River Clyde and its tributaries and help tackle flooding and climate change.

As part of the £250m, five-year upgrade, the water is investing more than £12m in a project which will tackle sewer flooding in the Elmvale Row area of Springburn.

Two massive storage tanks, each 25 metres (82 feet) in diameter and 18 metres (60 feet) deep, will provide 13,500 cubic metres of extra storm water storage in the local sewer network.

Pumps are being installed in the tanks to form a storm return system which will return the storm water stored in the tanks back into the sewer system once the storm conditions have abated. The project also includes the upsizing of about 400 metres of waste water pipes. The project is expected to be completed late this year.

Keith Brown commented:

“I’m pleased that this project is progressing well and will provide much needed relief to those in this area who have been affected by regular floods in the past. It demonstrates Scottish Water’s commitment to tackling these problems and the Government’s support for this kind of investment to address flooding issues.”

During the project so far, which is being carried out for Scottish Water by its delivery partners aBV, the amey Black & Veatch joint venture, about 30,000 tonnes of rock have been removed, which was sent for recycling, and 14,000 tonnes of contaminated material, which was taken for treatment as opposed to landfill.

Some major projects in Scottish Water’s investment have already been completed and the preparatory work for others is well under way.

 Those under way include a £100m sewer tunnel called the Shieldhall Tunnel, which will improve water quality in the River Clyde and its tributaries and provide aesthetic screening to overflows into these watercourses. It will alleviate pressure on the existing network by providing additional storm water storage and will reduce the risk of flooding in parts of Mount Florida and Giffnock.