A PROPOSAL to drain and fill the man-made wetlands area near Tynwald Park and Turriff Lodge has been lodged with the Derwent Valley Council. Emma Riley and Associates have made a 322-page application on behalf of TasWater for a planning permit.
The wetlands were constructed in the 1990s to provide tertiary treatment for water being discharged from the then council-owned Turriff Lodge sewage treatment plant. The plant is now owned by TasWater and an ecological assessment in 2019 found the wetlands – still owned by the council – had not been maintained and no longer provided a significant treatment benefit.
The water company proposes piping its treated effluent directly to the river and returning the wetland to its previous state as an open space. The council has previously voted in favour of the removal of the wetlands and consultation carried out by the council did not receive any objections to the proposal.
Submissions relating to the application close with the council at 5pm today (March 6).
