Subterranean sewage works is ahead of its time
The main structure of an underground waste water processing facility at the Bailonggang waste water treatment plant, the largest in Asia, will be completed on Saturday, nearly one month earlier than it was planned.
An underground structure at Bailonggang waste water treatment plant will be roofed tomorrow, nearly one month earlier than planned, according to Shanghai Construction Group.
Bailonggang is already the largest water treatment facility in Shanghai, and the latest expansion is able to process 500,000 cubic meters of waste water per day.
There are two levels underground. The lower hosts processing pools while the upper level is for workers to monitor operations and handle emergencies.
The structure will be completely covered with soil and planted with trees. A park with soccer fields is also planned.
Bailonggang, in Heqing Town in the Pudong New Area, deals with about one third of Shanghai’s sewage. After the current upgrade is complete, the water discharged from the plant will meet the country’s highest standards.
It is the first large underground structure in China to use prefabricated units, which considerably reduced construction time.
According to Qi Zhen, executive vice manager of the project, many huge components were made in a factory and assembled on site like building blocks.
“It is much more difficult to build them directly on site. With pre-made structures, we can reduce work time on site and cut dust pollution,” he said.
Although prefabrication techniques have been used in construction for years, the task was tougher in such a large project underground as the construction team had to consider factors including waterproofing and stress.
The project started in September 2017 and the roof, scheduled to be sealed at the end of January, will be completed tomorrow.
“We will roof the underground part entirely at the weekend. Other contractors can then begin to install the equipment,” Qi said.
Bailonggang opened in 1999 handling 1.2 million cubic meters of water per day. It was upgraded and expanded in 2008 and 2012 to increase its daily capacity to 2.8 million cubic meters. In 2016, the pools were covered to reduce unpleasant effects on the environment.
More than half the city’s 53 sewage plants have undergone major renovations and several new plants are being built to improve the quality of water in local waterways.
By 2020, with the new and renovated plants, the city will treat 10.5 million cubic meters of water every day.
Workers install prefabricated structures at the construction site.
Workers install prefabricated structures at the construction site.
