Shady Solution to Fountain Evaporation Problems

A unique, environmentally friendly concept to minimise the amount of water lost to evaporation by the Gateway Fountain on Glen Osmond Road has been developed by an Adelaide shade structure building company.

The concept – involving the construction of an eye catching cantilever framed fabric shade structure – would prevent evaporation by shielding the fountain’s water from the day’s sun. Perhaps more importantly, however, it could also be designed to catch up to 100,000 litres of water each year, which could be put back into the storage and recycling system for the fountain to draw from when required.

Tim Seymour-Smith, managing director of Adelaide shade structure company W.A. Young, says the proposed canopy would also enhance the appeal of the fountain and increase the visual impact for visitors driving into Adelaide. “The fountain has been plagued by water problems since its inception”, says Mr Seymour-Smith, “and this proposal addresses some of those concerns by minimising evaporation and enhancing water catchment.”

“The use of a waterproof membrane fabric in the roof design means minimal impact upon the environment, as significantly less steel is required for the framework than would be for a traditional solid roof structure. Further, all of the materials used are 100% recyclable, making the proposed structure an environmentally-friendly, water saving, and highly visually appealing concept for the gateway to our capital city.”

Prior to being switched off in 2007, the fountain lost an average of 997,000 litres per year, according to Department for Transport, Energy, and Infrastructure officials, although how much of this is from leakage as opposed to evaporation is not known.

“Clearly, the proposed structure cannot fix any leakage problems inherent in the design and construction of the fountain. However, resolving evaporation issues and increasing catchment and storage capacity will assist enormously with the water problems overall, and define South Australia as environmentally responsible to anyone coming into Adelaide via the gateway.”

For more information
For further information, and concept images of the proposal, please contact Tim Seymour-Smith at W.A. Young either via office (08) 8276 1111, mobile 0419 922 250, or email tim@wayoung.com.au. Alternatively, you can contact him via their website at http://wayoung.com.au