PUB fines two firms for loss of over 1.6m litres of drinking water
PUB has fined two construction firms for damaging water mains and causing a combined loss of more than 1.6 million litres of drinking water, equivalent to about two-thirds of an Olympic-sized swimming pool.
Ground Instrumentation & Engineering was fined $54,000 on June 11 while Sato Kogyo (S) was fined $48,000 on June 19, a statement by the national water agency said yesterday .
Ground Instrumentation & Engineering was convicted of two charges - damaging a 2,200mm diameter water main and carrying out drilling works without an approved plan from PUB.
PUB said the total fine of $54,000 is the highest to date in a water main damage case. And it is the largest water main damage case to be prosecuted.
PUNCTURED WATER MAIN
The firm was carrying out soil investigation works at Raffles Country Club on Aug 27 last year when its drilling punctured the water main.
The company had not consulted PUB on the location of the water main before commencing the soil investigations works.
The damage caused 890,000 litres of drinking water to be wasted.
This is the company's second offence. In June 2016, it was fined $40,000 for damaging a 300mm in diameter water main near the junction of Bukit Timah Road and Newton Circus.
Sato Kogyo, the second company that was fined, had damaged a 300mm diameter water main at Upper Thomson Road on Jan 4, 2017.
It did not install necessary support structures for the water main during construction works for the Upper Thomson MRT Station and tunnels for the Thomson-East Coast Line.
The water main became dislodged at a joint and caused a water supply disruption to 13 residents in the nearby Upper Thomson and Bright Hill estates. About 720,000 litres of drinking water was lost.
This is also Sato Kogyo's second offence. In July 2013, it was fined $40,000 for damaging a 300mm water main at Bedok Reservoir Road.
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