Pressure sewer project wins industry award

South East Water’s Peninsula ECO project has received a top industry award in recognition of its approach to customer engagement. The largest pressure sewer project in Australia’s history, Peninsula ECO aims to connect 16,500 homes on Victoria’s Mornington Peninsula with an intelligent, remotely operated reticulated sewer network.

The system replaces ageing septic tanks and on-site treatment plants, which can pollute groundwater and waterways, with a pressure sewer network able to cope with the region’s peak season usage without the need for large-scale excavation. Connecting not only removes the hassle of maintaining on-site systems, but it also frees up space for home owners to do more with their properties, such as build extensions, decks or swimming pools.

“Ageing and failing septic systems can pollute the waterways around us, but with most problems often hidden below ground, not every customer is immediately aware of the benefits of connecting to Peninsula ECO,” said Charlie Littlefair, general manager for asset creation at South East Water.

“We set about communicating the broad range of benefits of connecting by engaging other community stakeholders, such as plumbers, builders and estate agents, who helped us explain the value Peninsula ECO delivers to home owners.”

With South East Water teams now connecting more than eight properties a day, customer engagement has played a vital role in the project’s success, resulting in Peninsula ECO’s recognition as best Customer Engagement Project at last month’s Australian Utility Innovators Awards. The award came as the project connected its 2000th customer — Rye homeowner Adrian — just 24 months after connections commenced.

According to Littlefair, the project’s results speak for themselves.

“Last financial year connections increased by 300%, and we’ve expanded our contractor capabilities to keep up with demand,” he said.

Pictured: The inside of a pressure sewer tank.