Our team did an awesome job cleaning out an Auckland stormwater pond recently. These ponds are designed to treat stormwater runoff from a nearby road, filtering it and removing sludge and debris before it hits the waterways. This particular pond was consumed at both the inlet and outlet areas so our job was to clean out the pond in order to restore the pond’s efficiency and optimise its performance.
The before and after shots speak for themselves — it looks like new now!
before… 
during… 
after…
Our work included capturing and relocating native fish species from the pond, including eels. We dewatered around 30,000l of water then removed as much sludge (around 24,000l) as possible using our suction trucks before an excavator was deployed to clear out the overgrown vegetation. The excess vegetation was dug out and placed into gantry screening bins to dewater before being taken to landfill; some was left to grow to a height where it will act as a litter barrier.
Our experienced operator Brent Murphy led this project, with project manager Mike Dargaville, and it was great to see Brent passing on his experience and knowledge to his Hydrovac colleagues – safe to say we now have an enthusiastic team for the pond renewal season ahead!
In the 8 years since its last renewal, the forebay accumulated 90 tonnes of sediment (consisting of sludges, sands, aggregates, vegetation, hydrocarbons). With this clean/renewal, this pond and performance will be good for another 10 years. Nice work, team!