Keith Brown MSP, the Scottish Cabinet Secretary for Infrastructure, Investment and Cities, yesterday saw how preparatory work is progressing on construction of the biggest waste water tunnel ever to be built in Scotland.
The £100 million, 3.1 mile long tunnel in south west Glasgow, which is five times longer than the Clyde Tunnel, is a key part of Scottish Water’s £250 million, five-year programme of work to improve river water quality and the natural environment. The programme is the biggest investment in the Greater Glasgow area’s waste water infrastructure in more than a century.
Mr Brown visited the Shieldhall Tunnel project at the Craigton industrial estate and saw work progressing on preparations to enable the tunnelling to start.
The first 250 metres of the tunnel, and the launching chamber, are being built using the open cut technique, involving excavation between concrete piled walls bored into the bedrock.
The work will enable a state-of-the-art Tunnel Boring Machine (TBM) to be launched and start construction of the main part of the tunnel. The 1000 tonne, 180 metre-long tunnel boring machine (TBM), is expected to arrive in a few weeks and then begin constructing the tunnel between Craigton and Queen’s Park.
The tunnel will enable Scottish Water to improve water quality in the River Clyde and its tributaries and tackle flooding. When complete, it will provide 90,000 cubic metres of extra storm water storage and the increased capacity of the waste water network will provide better screening of overflows into rivers and reduce the risk of flooding in parts of the Mount Florida and Giffnock areas.
Speaking during his visit, Mr Brown said the Scottish Government is “fully supportive of this kind of investment in key infrastructure projects in Scotland’s biggest city.”
Douglas Millican, Scottish Water’s Chief Executive, said:
“Much of the Greater Glasgow area’s existing waste water infrastructure was built in Victorian times and the modernisation of the system and construction of new underground assets, such as the Shieldhall Tunnel, will protect the natural environment, reduce the risk of flooding and meet the needs of growth, economic development and regeneration.
“It is also supporting jobs and employment opportunities, including a number of apprenticeships.”
Last week the water said it is looking to recruit another 40 apprentices in 2016.
The team building the Shieldhall Tunnel for Scottish Water, known as the Glasgow Tunnels Partnership, is a commercial joint venture between Costain and VINCI Construction Grands Projets - known as the CVJV. Costain are currently progressing with the installation of a plant to manage and recycle the earth which will be displaced during the tunnel construction.
The team is also preparing to begin work to improve parts of the existing waste water network in parts of the south side of Glasgow, including the part where the new tunnel will be connected to the existing network near Queen’s Park.
The route of the tunnel was chosen to maximise the use of parkland and minimise disruption. The overall project began in early 2015 and included a massive amount of preparatory work, such as mining consolidation and utility diversions.
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