Kent among first in UK to use AI storm overflows
Southern Water will introduce AI to prevent sewage spills.
Southern Water have announced that they will be installing new AI technology for the first time this month to reduce flooding and storm overflows in Kent.
Artificial intelligence will reduce storm overflows in Kent, with Whitstable becoming one of the first places in the country to use the technology.
The aim will be to help prevent sewage spills into nature and our rivers. It will be monitoring the existing pipe capacity and use a gate to reduce the water flow during heavy rainfall.
AI gates will be installed in Diamond Road and Tankerton Circus, and if successful the gate will shut when storm pipes reach capacity during bad weather thanks to the help of technology.
The work is part of Southern Water’s pathfinder projects, which looks at nature-based and engineering solutions to slow-the-flow of water to reduce storm overflows.
Keith Herbert, Southern Water’s lead for the pathfinder project, said:
"We’re keen explore innovative new ways including cutting edge technology like this to help reduce storm overflows.
“We believe if this is successful it has the potential to be a gamechanger as it is more cost-effective and less carbon heavy than other methods like building storm tanks.
It comes as part of the Clean Rivers and Seas Plan, that sets out how £1.5 billion will be spent between 2025 and 2035, to deliver long-term solutions that will get to the root cause of storm overflow use.
Mr Herbert explained,
"when the gates close, the flow backs up behind them to ensure that we are using our entire network of storage to stop the water overflowing into the environment”.
He also told us how it may help local businesses, he said: “The economy is so related to people going to the beach and enjoying themselves so we want to make sure we are doing everything we can.
“Though, storm overflows don’t have one singe answer, as it’s about rainwater getting into our system and about the capacity of our system.”
“Having AI across our network gives us a level of vigilance about where we need to go, where the pressure points are and where we need to focus our efforts.”
Kent is one of the first places in the UK to benefit from the new technology and if successful, we could see more introduced across the county and in other parts of the country.
Mr Herbert added: “Its introduction could pave the way for more of them to be introduced.”