A risk mitigation approach to integrating underground tanks

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ACO’s guidance and online stormwater tank calculator can help engineers validate the strength required for stormwater tanks.

Without sound structural integrity, underground stormwater tanks could buckle under the combined weight of the pavement and anticipated live loads – if not immediately, then over time. This poses serious legal and safety risks.

Ensuring tanks properly meet a project’s strength, durability and quality requirements is therefore essential.

But in Australia, there are no standards governing the required strength of plastic tanks. This places a burden on engineers who will need to make their own assessment on tank performance while leaning on tank manufacturers for both laboratory and empirical data.

Local councils ensure tanks comply with regulations by enforcing their Development Control Plan.This specifies the methods an engineer needs to employ to ensure a project adheres to the stormwater management plan. It takes into account the volume of water from landscaped, hardstand and roofed areas that the property needs to manage. However, it relies on the certifying engineer to integrate the tanks properly so that the structures themselves meet a project’s minimum strength, quality and durability requirements.

In Australia there are no standards that govern the strength of plastic, underground stormwater tank systems. This means there are no industry guidelines for short-term and long-term strength and durability.

Fortunately, there is a guide that engineers can rely on. It is called Structural Design of Modular Geocellular Drainage Tanks (SDMGDT), published by the Construction Industry and Information Association (CIRIA).

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