Airdrie Film Script text

Voiceover: Over the next two years, Scottish Water is embarking on a twenty two million pound project in Airdrie to protect the natural environment in local watercourses and reduce flooding risk at Cairnhill Road.

Voiceover: Work has already commenced in partnership with Byzak Limited. The project involves three key pieces of work.

Voiceover: The first piece of work is upgrades to the waste water network outside Airdrie Business Centre. This work will be completed by June twenty eleven. 

Voiceover: The second piece of work will reduce flooding risk in the Cairnhill area by increasing the sewer size and linking it into a new storm transfer tunnel. Work started in April twenty eleven and will take six months to complete.

Voiceover: The third and final piece of work is also the biggest.
Molly the Mole – the tunnelling machine named by a pupil at Alexandra Primary School – is seen here being lowered into the ground before it tunnels 1.2km below the streets of Airdrie.
A large two point four metre diameter tunnel will carry storm water flows deep below Victoria Place, running as deep as forty metres. The tunnel will start in the ground to the rear of the GO Outdoor Store and continue east, ending at Airdrie Railway Station car park.

Voiceover: After a competitive tendering process, Byzak Limited were chosen as the main contractor.

Geoff Aitkenhead interview: Byzak are instrumental in helping us deliver this work in Airdrie as they have experience of the deep tunnelling that is central to the project. Scottish Water has a commitment to improving the environment across Scotland by upgrading waste water networks. This project will remove overflows from water courses and redirect them to a transfer sewer for treatment. This ensures that Scottish Water continues to meet strict EU environmental guidelines that are enforced by SEPA.

Voiceover: Scottish Water have been keeping their dedicated webpage on this project updated as well as starting a Facebook page. As the project progresses, key milestones will be reported in the local media and on the internet. Once completed this project will provide the dual benefits of minimising the flooding risk at Cairnhill Road and protecting the natural environment in Airdrie and beyond for future generations.