Chongqing- Facing the public's concern about sewer overflows, Southwestern China's Chongqing Municipality has taken the opportunity to strengthen the management of urban municipal facilities with the transformation of old downtown residential communities.

In the Jiefangbei sub-district in downtown Chongqing, workers excavated the road and laid pipes at the construction site of Luohan Temple Community, carrying out a rainwater and sewer diversion renovation project to improve the quality of the residential living environment.

"We strongly support the rainwater and sewer diversion renovation project," said a resident in Luohan Temple Community. "In the past, there would be sewer flowing into the road at the entrance terrace when it rained, where it had a huge impact on environment and sanitation, and in serious cases, made the road impassable."

"The implementation of the rainwater and sewer diversion project is an important measure to speed up urban infrastructure construction, improve urban functions and enhance the level of urban management," said the construction manager on site. "We will do our best to complete this renovation project during the construction period."

Rainwater and sewer diversion renovation

Like the Luohan Temple case, many old residential communities in the Jiefangbei sub-district struggled with the problem of cross-flowing the rainwater and sewer. Due to its old age, the underground pipe network's poor sewer drainage made environmental pollution an increasingly prominent, unwelcome feature that constrained the urban management upgrade of the street.

The rainwater and sewer diversion renovation will effectively dredge the "capillaries" of the urban underground pipe network and make the city's sewer and drainage smoother. The project not only repairs and renovates old septic tanks and rainwater side ditches but also uses a larger diameter and lighter winding structural wall drainage pipe (POEHDPE) for the reconstruction of the sewer network.

POEHDPE means the brittle-ductile transition of poly (ethylene-co-octene) (POE) toughened high-density polyethylene (HDPE), which HDPE pipe has become the ideal piping solution for public and private sewer and wastewater systems in recent decades.

Compared to the existing cement pipes, the specific gravity of the HDPE pipe is less than 50% of cast iron and cement pipes, making it easier to install, more resistant to corrosion, and faster in construction, which can increase the installation progress by more than three times. Besides, it is better in sealing performance and less prone to water seepage and leakage, meeting the long-term use needs of residents.

"Urban rainwater and sewer diversion are of great significance to improve the living environment of residents and enhance their happiness index," said a competent official with the Jiefangbei sub-district. 

According to the official, the rainwater and sewer diversion renovation mainly involves two neighborhoods, Luohan Temple and Cangbai Road, which involve communities and enterprises. The project will benefit more than 11,000 residents here.

At present, the work has been started on all sites and has entered the pipe-laying stage, and it is expected to be completed by the end of the year. 

Next, by focusing on the rainwater and sewer diversion renovation project, Chongqing will strengthen urban infrastructure construction, improve the urban management level, make the city more ecological and help local people live happier.

(Shi Jiaqi, as an intern, also contributed to this report.)