Beattie sets March 17 for SEQ recycled water vote

Joint statement

Premier Peter Beattie and Deputy Premier Anna Bligh today announced that on March 17 2007 South East Queensland residents will have a say on introducing recycled water into existing water supplies.

The Premier told the Parliament that Queenslanders view on the use of purified recycled water, which meets all health and safety standards, by mixing it with the region’s existing water supplies would be sought.

“The reality is that the prospects for rain are not good and we must continue to look at all options for future water supply,” said the Premier.

“One option is recycled water for residential use.

“Not as part of our drought response, but as part of our on-going water supply in good times and bad.

“I have no qualms about drinking recycled water and I believe through education and public awareness our community are becoming much more accepting – it is used all around the world.

“It is a clean, safe and viable option. However, I want to hear what members of the public think.

“That is why I am pleased to announce that South East Queenslanders will get their chance to have a say on March 17 next year.

He said the Deputy Premier would introduce the South East Queensland Water Recycling Plebiscite Bill 2006 which would set in motion the 17 March 2007 vote.

“This will give people in the council areas that draw from the main water supplies of the Wivenhoe system a say on recycled water,” he said.

The plebiscite will:

vtake in 19 shires in South East Queensland from the Tweed River to and including Cooloola Shire in the north and to and including Toowoomba in the west.

• allow for the addition of local government areas for the plebiscite.
• vbe determined by a 50%+1 majority of voters across the region.
• vcosts are estimated at $10 million.

The Premier said that the beauty of the State’s new Western Corridor Recycled Water Scheme was that if South East Queenslanders support the use of recycled water it can be done at minimal extra cost.

The pipeline is being built with additional capacity above that required by the power stations and other industrial users.

In this way, if the need arises, the State will be able to more closely examine pumping the water into the Lockyer, Warrill and Bremer Valleys to improve rural water supply as well as pumping the treated water into Wivenhoe Dam for residential use.

Ms Bligh said that the plebiscite was about the use of recycled water as part of the State’s ongoing water supply, in good times and in bad.

“However, in emergency circumstances, governments must make emergency decisions, and we will not resile from its responsibility in that regard,” she said.

She said that special legislation was required because this was not a statewide vote.

The State does not currently have the power to hold a plebiscite, with compulsory voting, in only one part of Queensland.

“The precise question to be asked will be determined by the Parliament at its first sitting in the New Year,” she said.

Ms Bligh said she was convinced that planned indirect potable reuse of purified recycled water would become increasingly relied upon throughout the world.

She cited existing examples:

• In Orange County in the United States, recycled water recharge into groundwater aquifers comprises about 7 per cent of potable supplies, increasing to 25 per cent in 2007.
• In Upper Occoquan, Virginia, which supplies Washington D.C., recycled water from surface storages comprises 7 per cent of potable supplies in normal years and up 85 per cent in times of drought.
• In Singapore, recycled water comprises 1 per cent of potable water supplies, while the majority of the country’s recycled water is used for high technology manufacturing.
• In Windhoek, Namibia, recycled water comprises 25 per cent of potable water supply to a city of 250,000 people. Up to 50 per cent is allowed.

Ms Bligh further detailed that unplanned indirect potable reuse is where treated wastewater was released from treatment plants into rivers or streams, which eventually end up in dams used to supply drinking water for downstream populations.

“This occurs all over the planet.

“In many cases, the rates of unplanned indirect potable reuse exceed the examples of intentional schemes I just provided.

• In London, up to 70 per cent of water extracted from the Thames for potable supplies in dry years is discharged from wastewater treatment plants. In normal years, the proportion is closer to 10 per cent.
• Closer to home, the Penrith sewage treatment plant discharges into the Hawkesbury-Nepean River and supplies over 30 per cent of the water extracted from the Richmond water treatment plant in dry summers.

“The fact of the matter is, recycled water already contributes to South East Queensland’s water supply – we have unplanned indirect potable reuse because the releases from the Esk and Lowood sewage treatment plants make their way into the Wivenhoe system.”

Ms Bligh said added that she believed South East Queensland should be using the Western Corridor Recycled Water Scheme to its full potential, providing an additional long-term potable water supply.

“However, issues involving the use of recycled water are both complex and contentious. I understand that it makes a lot of people uncomfortable.

“Recycling to the highest standards involves complex technology and it is legitimate for people to want to know how their health and safety will be protected.

“For these reasons, the Queensland Government has committed to seeking the views of the South East Queensland community on indirect potable reuse,” she said.

Media contact: Deputy Premier’s Office 3224 6900