Low lying parts of Ipswich CBD downstream of Limestone Park are now better protected from flash flooding after localised heavy rainfall with the completion of a new detention basin adjacent to the helipad.
Ipswich City Council CEO David Farmer said the site within the park was also bordered by the skate park and PCYC.
“A detention basin is designed to store stormwater runoff for a limited time and then release it slowly over several hours through a small outflow at the lowest point,” he said.
“The new Limestone Park detention basin was constructed at a cost of $2.1 million.
“It will have significant benefits during flash flooding, however it will not prevent a major river flood such as occurred in 2011 and 1974.
“Ipswich has a number of existing detention basins across the city including major basins at Marburg, Rosewood and Redbank Plains.”
Part of the Limestone Park project also included a new irrigated cricket pitch.
Fast Facts:
- Storage capacity 25.2 megalitres
- 2 kilometres subsoil drainage installed
- 16,000 square metres of turf supplied and placed in five days
- 6,000 cubic metres of topsoil and sand placed
- 14,000 cubic metres of material excavated
- 6,000 cubic metres of material placed and compacted to construct detention basin embankment
- Every rock used to construct spillway was hand placed
- Multi-purpose sports field now fully irrigated
- Construction was carried out by local construction company (Naric Civil) based at Dinmore
Bonus: irrigated multi-purpose sports field forms the floor of the detention basin