Water Recycling Research
We are involved in a range of studies and projects to investigate alternative water supplies and understand more about recycled water.
The Eastern Treatment Plant - Planned Upgrade will also provide more options to use recycled water.
Aquifer storage and recovery
Aquifer storage and recovery (or managed aquifer recharge and recovery) involves storing water underground that can be drawn out at a later time.
Recycled water could be used to restore natural underground water reservoirs that have declining yields and water quality.
Recharging aquifers is an alternative to surface storage, when it is impractical due to limited space and high evaporation rates.
The Melbourne water industry continues to investigate potential locations for aquifer storage and recovery. If potential locations are found, strategies will be developed to store recycled water underground for future water needs and environmental benefits.
Smart Water Fund
The Smart Water Fund is a partnership between Melbourne Water, the Victorian State Government and Water businesses.
The Smart Water Fund was established in 2002 to encourage and support innovative development in the community, in the fields of:
- water recycling
- biosolids recycling
- water conservation.
The Fund has supported more than 165 projects, with over $28 million committed in funding.
A number of the projects have focused on recycled water. These include:
- research into new technologies for the production of recycled water
- research to ensure that recycled water continues to be used safely and effectively
- guidelines for the use of recycled water (eg. for industry and horticulture)
- social research
- demonstration projects.
More information about the fund and these projects can be found at the Smart Water website.
Water recycling research
We continue to work with the National Health and Medical Research Council to develop updates to the Australian Guidelines for Water Recycling.
At the Western Treatment Plant, blue-green algal blooms in the lagoons have been interrupting the recycled water supply so we are doing research into how to prevent these.
We have been trialling a new solar-powered lagoon mixer which is a floating, solar-powered machine that circulates the effluent to stop the growth and spread of blue-green algae.
Ultrasound algae destroyers to prevent blue-green algal blooms and an online blue-green algal monitoring device are also being tested.
Another project is looking at improving a commonly used water treatment system (dissolved air flotation) to remove algae from recycled water. Other research is looking at the usefulness of rapid field test kits which provide results on algal toxins within an hour (current methods only provide results within 2-3 days).
Potential cross connections between the supply of recycled water and potable water in the home are being tackled through two research projects. One project is looking at using fluorescent signals from recycled water and drinking water to distinguish when a cross connection has taken place. The other project is exploring the use a number of distinguishing features, typical of each water type, to develop a small device mounted on a water tap inside a house to indicate when a cross connection has taken place.