Situated on the southern fringe of Adelaide, the City of Onkaparinga has joined forces with SA Water and the Willunga Basin Water Company to deliver a $110 million water recycling and reuse strategy. The strategy, ‘Water Proofing the South’, was initiated by Council and is part of the wider Water Proofing Adelaide strategy. It will provide 3,800 megalitres of reusable water to the southern suburbs of Adelaide by reclaiming treated effluent and stormwater for use in homes, businesses, industry and the environment.
Federal Minister for Climate Change and Water, Penny Wong, visited Adelaide in April to sign a $34.5 million agreement with Onkaparinga to implement the strategy.
Under the project, the Willunga pipeline will be extended by approximately six kilometres from Christies Beach wastewater treatment plant into the southern suburbs.
The Willunga pipeline currently diverts a significant proportion of the treated wastewater from Christies Beach to the Willunga Basin for reuse in irrigation. With the extension, water transported through the pipeline will be available to irrigate parks, gardens and school grounds, and will also be used in public toilets. This will save one gigalitre of mains water annually.
Works commenced on stage 1 of Water Proofing the South in April and will be delivered as a number of projects.
The entire project is expected to be completed by June 2010.
City of Onkaparinga Mayor, Councillor Lorraine Rosenberg, said Water Proofing the South will deliver very significant water savings to the region.
“The 3,800 megalitres of reusable water that will be available to our City would cover the playing surface of AAMI Stadium to the top of the goal posts approximately 30 times,” she said. “Stage 1 alone will increase the amount of urban reuse by over 1,100 megalitres and viticultural and agricultural reuse by 1,800 megalitres.
“Other positive outcomes from stage 1 will be an increase in network storage capacity of 1,100 megalitres, and 900 megalitres of water will be saved from unsustainable disposal. We will also investigate the suitability of treated wastewater to supplement environmental flows within the Onkaparinga River.”
Mayor Rosenberg said Water Proofing the South will yield a range of environmental, economic and social benefits for the region.
“A key environmental benefit will arise from reduced reliance on mains supplies, which will aid the health of the River Murray,” she said. “Stage 1 will substantially improve the quality of water in river systems and the marine environment, including considerable reductions in ocean outfall from SA Water’s Christies Beach Wastewater Treatment Plant.”
Mayor Rosenberg said the strategy provides an opportunity to expand the McLaren Vale viticulture industry by building on the extensive Willunga Basin Water Company pipeline network.
“More than 50 per cent of the McLaren Vale winegrowing region is currently irrigated using reclaimed Willunga Basin Water Company water,” she said. “The strategy will enable greater access to an unrestricted, cost effective water supply for the region’s winegrowers and other primary producers, as well as the manufacturing industry.
“The aim is for overall water use in the region to be economically, environmentally and socially sustainable.
“Our communities are extremely important to the implementation of this strategy and we are keen to involve them wherever possible.”
Water Proofing the South is part of Onkaparinga Council’s overarching water management plan, ‘Water Futures’.
This will encompass major water resources, including mains, storm and ground water, treated effluent as well as water dependent ecosystems, guiding further stages of Water Proofing the South.
For further information contact Mayor Rosenberg on 0409 691 188.
