City of Kwinana, Western Australian, made Facebook fame last month with a post about the success of its drainage nets, which has gone viral with over 2.5 million people all over the world reached in 48 hours.
The post highlights the success of the City’s efforts to reduce the discharge of rubbish from drainage systems, preventing gross pollutants and solid waste being discharged into nature reserves, by installing two drainage nets in March which have since collected 370kg of debris.
Mayor, Carol Adams, said the overwhelming response to the City’s post was not surprising considering the passionate support the City receives from its own community in relation to environmental initiatives, which was now clearly being embraced on a global level with the post also being shared by an eco-activist with a large following on Facebook.
“We know that the Kwinana community is very passionate about environmental initiatives and rallies around actions with positive environmental impact and if it was not for the drainage nets, 370kg of debris would have ended up in our reserve.
“The nets are placed on the outlet of two drainage pipes, which are located between residential areas and natural areas.
“This allows the nets to capture the gross pollutants carried by storm water from the local road network before those pollutants are discharged and contaminate the natural environment at the downstream end of
the outlet area.
“This ensures that the habitat of the local wildlife is protected and minimizes the risk of wildlife being caught in the nets.
“To date no wildlife has been caught up in either of the City’s nets.”
The nets cost the City just under $20,000 and are expected to realise considerable cost savings in labour intensive work previously required to collect the rubbish scattered around the reserve by hand.
The nets are emptied directly into a truck by machinery. The waste is then transported to a sorting facility which processes the waste and converts the green waste to mulch and separates the recyclable/non-recyclable materials.
