Ian Pham

07 Nov Ian Pham

Ian is an integrated water engineer working with over 7 years’ experience in both the Brisbane and Melbourne development industry. He is currently design lead of green/blue infrastructure specializing in greenfield projects within the growth corridors of Melbourne. From concept to construction, one of his current projects is the largest wetland being constructed in Melbourne in the heart of new Thornhill Park residential estate. Ian is passionate of the human element in engineering infrastructure and how it is linked within the natural environment.

Unfolding Waterway Design – Site Exploration, Humanscale, Enhance

The paper presents a methodology of combining human designs tools with the exploration of existing site characteristics to drive waterway design. The paper discusses a key ongoing case study of an industrial estate adjacent to Laverton Creek. This will describe in detail the balancing act of modernity of Melbourne and the native environment.

Laverton Creek is located within the heart of an industrial area. The design will tackle how the creek will be designed to live in a future catchment. The 70m wide creek corridor has ecological values within its invert, a connecting constructed waterway and the last of remnant of eucalyptus tree which the authorities has outlined as the last opportunity to retain the genetic material within the landscape.

The design methodology comprises of three steps, as follows:

Site Exploration to discover site specific water context. For example, within Laverton Creek existing water bodies could be used as a design element to design a sediment basin or level controls.

Human-scale acknowledges the existing and future usage of the site. It accepts the intensified hydrological impact on the site. This step assembles engineering options keeping site’s existing characters as the core. For example, the area would be used as an open space for employees as well as increases in flow conveyance.

Enhance Designs are achieved when the elements from above steps are considerately combined.  For example, features provided by the existing waterway were combined with requirements where the existing Creek invert levels were retained and banks were adopt to provide a robust waterway native to the landscape.

The paper will describe the above process in detail and as applied in designing the waterway.  The paper will also discuss tangible benefits of the methodology, with the aim of creating thriving waterways within our communities now and into the future.