Scottish Water has announced that work is now underway to dismantle and remove a major overland pipeline in Ayrshire.

The pipeline is now being removed following the completion of a multi-million-pound upgrade of the local sewer network.

During the works, 12-metre-long sections of temporary pipe were bolted together above ground so that more than a kilometre of existing underground sewer could be relined.

The temporary structure carried up to 700-litres of waste water every second between a pumping station in Saltcoats to the treatment works in Stevenston, meaning customers were unaffected while the works were carried out.

Georgina Reid, Scottish Water's corporate affairs manager for the west said: "This has been a monumental effort by everyone concerned.

"The sheer scale of the operation was daunting, but our alliance partner and their specialist contractors worked tirelessly to complete the work required.

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"This investment will now improve the resilience of the network, drastically reduce the likelihood of further bursts and protect the environment and local bathing beaches."

Following a spate of bursts a £4 million project was developed to upgrade the pipeline.

Beginning in May 2023, over two kilometres of fencing was installed and around 100 sections of 700mm steel pipe shipped from the Netherlands and assembled using over 4,000 bolts.

Engineers also had to install two complex connections to allow flows to be diverted along the new temporary pipeline, and a five metre high pipe bridge had to be installed to allow access to a local caravan park, golf course and abattoir.

Georgina added: "This was a tried and tested method to deliver the resilience required as quickly as possible and with as little disruption as possible.

"We are extremely grateful to everyone involved, suppliers, contractors, customers and the local community.

"Scottish Water will continue to invest many millions of pounds on similar projects across the country to tackle the challenges of climate change, ageing infrastructure and increasing demand.

The project was delivered by Scottish Water's alliance partner, Caledonia Water Alliance (CWA).

Paul Milligan, communications manager with CWA, said: "We would like to thank Parkdeans Sandylands Holiday Park, Dunbai Highlands Meats Plant, Saltcoats Victoria FC and Auchenharvie Golf Course for their patience and understanding during this vital project.

"We were very glad to successfully reline the pipe so we could remove the temporary overland pipe.

"It was a fantastic team effort to get the pipe relined and help to protect the bathing waters of Saltcoats and Stevenson."