Water & Wastewater Asia January/February 2023

IN THE FIELD
MANAGING EXCESS
RAINWATER
with Wavin AquaCell
and gradually released to the ground or sewer
network slowly. Attenuation and infiltration
can help to control the level of surface water,
especially in areas prone to flooding or heavy
rains.
Climate change is having a visible toll on infrastructure
Due to climate change, cities worldwide
constantly face challenges such as floods,
droughts, heat stress, groundwater
depletion and surface-water pollution,
putting tremendous pressure on their civic
infrastructure. To tackle these burgeoning and
ongoing challenges, businesses need to adopt
future-proof and smart measures that help in
building climate-resilient cities designed on a
sustainable pattern.
MANAGING EXCESS WATER IS KEY TO
CREATING CLIMATE-RESILIENT CITIES
Excessive rainfall is one aspect of climate
change which causes places to collect
rainwater or results in a full-fledged floodlike
situation, creating emergencies in the
process. Therefore, it is necessary to manage
the excessive water to avoid damage to civic
infrastructure and provide optimal living
conditions for human beings residing there.
Finding a smart and future-proof solution
to manage excess water due to heavy rain
is key to creating cities that are designed to
tackle future challenges arising due to climate
change.
MANAGING EXCESS WATER AT BAPTCARE
RETIREMENT LIVING
Recently, Wavin completed an AquaCell
project in the Asia-Pacific region. At Baptcare
Retirement Living, Victoria state, Australia,
managing excess rainwater was one of the
major requirements in creating a climateresilient
and sustainable retirement living
facility. A solution that could handle the
excess water and manage it to create a floodproof
and sustainable system was sought.
Wavin’s AquaCell system was selected for its
technology that could manage excess rainfall,
in addition for its ability to be assembled to
create an underground structure, either as
a temporary attenuation tank or infiltration
soakaway.
The soakaway crates or attenuation tanks, or
on-site detention tanks, are interlocking crate
systems that allow surface water to be stored
To create a fool-proof attenuation and infiltration
underground system at Baptcare Retirement
Living, two on-site detention tanks (OSD),
each having a total volume of 105m 3 /min, were
installed to create a sustainable excess water
management facility that will provide a system
in green zones for a period of 50 years without
requiring any maintenance, as claimed by
Wavin.
Wavin AquaCell was the technology-of-choice
for a variety of other reasons. Firstly, the
attenuation and infiltration units were made of
modular and versatile virgin polypropylene units,
allowing for the underground tanks to be built
quickly. Unlike traditional concrete attenuation
tanks, these units required no-drying time and
less excavation, which resulted in less labourintensive
installation and made them easier to
manipulate and position due to their light weight.
Secondly, the Wavin AquaCell Lite units reduced
the risk of flooding through their management
of excess water, as well as being inspectable,
accessible and cleanable.
Lastly, the units also provided the controlled
release of stormwater into watercourses such
as sewer systems, could also be used to
recharge groundwater, and offered a sustainable
and cost-effective management of the water
environment.
36 WATER & WASTEWATER ASIA | JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2023