What is believed to be the world’s largest water gate valve has been created in Texas, USA. Blackhall Engineering, based in West Yorkshire, UK, designed the valve, which is the first of six 40 ft. valves weighing 100 tons.
The gate valve is part of a project to drastically increase the water supply in and around Dallas, Texas. A rapidly growing population means more than 13 million Dallas residents are likely to need a water supply by 2060 – more than double the number supplied by the authorities today.
In response, the USD $2 billion Integrated Pipeline Project (IPL) has been launched to enable water companies to increase the water supply by 350 million gallons (1.59 billion litres) per day, meeting the area’s water supply needs in the long term. The first valve, which has a century-long lifespan, has been installed, while the second is in the casting process.