Mount Crosby Pumping Station facts for kids

The Mount Crosby Pumping Station is a very important place that helps get clean water to homes in Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. It sits right on the Brisbane River, with parts on both the east side (at Mount Crosby) and the west side (at Chuwar). This station is a key part of the SEQ Water Grid, which supplies water to Brisbane and other nearby towns. It's also a special historical site, listed on the Brisbane Heritage Register.

History of Brisbane's Water Supply

Brisbane's first water supply, when it was a convict settlement, came from a reservoir in what is now Tank Street. There were no pipes back then. Water was delivered by carts to houses. People stored their water in barrels. This water was often thick and muddy, like "pea soup." People had to add wood ashes or a chemical called alum to make the dirt settle.

When the Brisbane Municipal Council was formed in 1859, one of their first big jobs was to find a better way to supply water. The town was growing fast!

How the Pumping Station Started

The Mount Crosby pumping station first used steam power. To make steam, they burned coal. A special tramway was built to bring the coal to the station. This tramway was first used to help build the station.

The station originally pumped untreated water from the east side of the river. As more water was needed, the Westbank Water Treatment Plant was built in 1986.

Floods and Water Treatment

During the big floods in January 2013, both water treatment plants had problems. The Brisbane River water became too muddy and full of silt. This meant the plants could not clean the water properly.

Location and Access

The Mount Crosby Pumping Station is located on both sides of the Brisbane River. There is a single-lane bridge over the Mount Crosby Weir. This bridge makes it easy to get between the two parts of the station. It is also a public road.

How the Water is Treated

Most of the water treated here comes from Lake Wivenhoe and Lockyer Creek, flowing through the Brisbane River. Some water also comes from Lake Manchester.

Water Intake and Cleaning

There are two pipes that take water in, one on each side of the river. These pipes have a special mesh screen with 25 millimetres (0.98 in) holes. This screen stops things like leaves and sticks from getting into the plant.

The water from the main Pumping Station goes to the Eastbank Water Treatment Plant. A smaller pumping station on the west bank supplies water to the Westbank Water Treatment Plant.

Water Treatment Plants

After the water is cleaned at both plants, it is pumped to two large reservoirs. These reservoirs, at Cameron's Hill, can hold 90 megalitres (3.2×10^⁶ cu ft) (megalitres) of water each. A megalitre is a million litres!

• The Westbank Water Treatment Plant can make 250 megalitres (8.8×10^⁶ cu ft) of clean drinking water every day. If lots of water is needed, it can make four times that amount, up to 1,000 megalitres (35×10^⁶ cu ft)! The whole cleaning process takes about 24 hours.
• The Eastbank Water Treatment Plant can make 850 megalitres (30×10^⁶ cu ft) of clean drinking water each day.

Images for kids

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  Pumping engine at the Mount Crosby waterworks, 1892

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  Kholo main pipeline being laid, Brisbane River at Mount Crosby, 1922

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  Tram weighbridge and cabin, Westbank (Chuwar), 2019

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  Engine House, from southwest, 2019

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  Office, Generator, and Workshop Building, 2019

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  Works Hill looking toward the Community Hall with the Recreation Area on the right hand side, 2019

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  Fireman's Duplex, No. 105 and 106, 2019

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  Second Engineer's House, 2019

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  Mt. Crosby Weir, western approach