Whale Beach and Pittwater, NSW

Martens were engaged to provide expert engineering advice for a legal dispute between the owners of a property in Whale Beach and Pittwater, NSW.

Martens were engaged to provide expert engineering advice for a legal dispute between the owners of a property in Whale Beach and Pittwater, NSW, regarding ongoing flooding and drainage related issues with the Council drainage system upslope of the site. Hydrological, meteorological, survey and site observations were used to develop detailed catchment maps, hydrological and hydraulic model for the existing drainage system.

The case was based around the site was experiencing increases in peak flood flow and nuisance flows, as well as increased urban detritus from the upslope drainage system.

Project scope included:

• Determination of catchments for existing conditions, natural conditions and existing conditions.
• Development of a detailed hydraulic and hydrological model to determine peak flows for a range of rainfall events – both major floods and nuisance flows – to determine the extent of increases in flow to the site as a result of the construction of the upslope drainage system.
• Provision of expert engineering advice to the Court and to the Client’s legal team to enable the Court to make a judgement.