Siltbuster to assist Swedish metro system construction
A MONMOUTHSHIRE business has been called in to assist in the construction of the Gothenburg Metro.
Siltbuster systems are being used to treat the waters generated during construction of the West Link project in Swedish city.
The West Link is an eightkilometre-long double-track railway, including a six-kilometre railway tunnel, underneath the city of Gothenburg.
Scheduled for completion in 2026, the £2.5bn development – which also involves the creation of three new underground stations – is aiming to increase accessibility to the city, boost capacity and improve travel times.
The construction involves a large amount of tunnelling and concreting, generating considerable volumes of potentially polluting waters. This is why Siltbuster was called in.
The contractors, Nordic Construction Company (NCC), are excavating through granite, limestone and clay for the tunnel and stations. During this work the site’s surface water runoff and ground water can come into direct contact with the exposed soil, creating waters with a high concentration of suspended matter including fine, slow-settling, clay particles. If a significant amount of this material enters nearby drains and watercourses, it can block the gills of fish and smother aquatic plants and invertebrates, starving them of light and oxygen. The extensive concreting works during the construction phases will also create highly alkaline, cementitious construction waters with an elevated pH of 12-13 – akin to oven cleaner; again highly polluting to the environment if left untreated.
“With the construction work taking place in a high profile, densely populated, built-up area, and with a main highway linking Malmo to Oslo running nearby, space is at an absolute premium. There’s limited room on site for additional plant and equipment. That’s why our iHB40R ticks all the boxes. It’s a highly effective, easy-to-use treatment solution, that’s agile and space efficient,” explains Kristian Downs, Siltbuster’s export sales manager.
Siltbuster’s iHB40Rs units – part of a fleet of over 400 systems routinely hired out at short notice to construction companies around the world – were supplied for the Gothenburg project through its local distributor Clean Water Engineering and will be on site for the next few years.
Mr Downs added: “To be involved in yet another prestigious international project is a great endorsement for the expertise of our team, the robustness of our systems, the size of our fleet, our technical back-up and our growing reputation within the world’s construction sector.”