Sydney’s desalination project will produce 250,000 m /d of drinking water, which equates to approximately 15% of Sydney’s supply. Sydney is currently solely reliant on surrounding dams for water. Seawater desalination will form a supplementary water source with water from the plant directly injected into Sydney’s drinking water network. In planning for the plant, Sydney Water came under much scrutiny from the public regarding the environmental impact of the plant, including the amount of energy required (and resulting greenhouse gases) and the effect of the seawater concentrate on the marine environment. In response to this, Sydney Water has worked to improve a number of areas to make desalination a more sustainable water supply alternative. An array of measures has been incorporated into the desalination plant to improve efficiency, maximise reuse of waste and complement the natural environment. Various specialist studies have been undertaken to improve the performance of the plant in these respects and also to quantify any impact of desalination on the surrounding environment. Research projects to further improve aspects of the desalination process with the potential for significant environmental and economic benefit have been undertaken and will continue. Combined, these measures contribute to making desalination a sustainable solution to supplement Sydney’s water supply during continuing drought, with population growth and climate change. This article appeared in D&WR magazine’s February/March 2009 issue.
Sydney’s desalination project will produce 250,000 m³/d of drinking water, which equates to approximately 15% of Sydney’s supply. Sydney is currently solely reliant on surrounding dams for water. Seawater desalination will form a supplementary water source with water from the plant directly injected into Sydney’s drinking water network.
In planning for the plant, Sydney Water came under much scrutiny from the public regarding the environmental impact of the plant, including the amount of energy required (and resulting greenhouse gases) and the effect of the seawater concentrate on the marine environment.
In response to this, Sydney Water has worked to improve a number of areas to make desalination a more sustainable water supply alternative. An array of measures has been incorporated into the desalination plant to improve efficiency, maximise reuse of waste and complement the natural environment.
Various specialist studies have been undertaken to improve the performance of the plant in these respects and also to quantify any impact of desalination on the surrounding environment. Research projects to further improve aspects of the desalination process with the potential for significant environmental and economic benefit have been undertaken and will continue.
Combined, these measures contribute to making desalination a sustainable solution to supplement Sydney’s water supply during continuing drought, with population growth and climate change.
This article appeared in D&WR magazine’s February/March 2009 issue.