Monitoring water networks for leaks is an essential part of any modern water loss management program. In Australia, monitoring water networks for leaks is becoming increasingly important as the country faces growing demand for water resources and the need to manage the impacts of climate change. A key obstacle to the wider adoption of monitoring technologies was their installation, operation [...]
NBN Co is taking action to address the inherent risks climate change poses to its operations, network continuity and service obligations. By embedding sustainability in all its activities, it aims to deliver on its purpose to lift the digital capability of Australia, while enabling long-term social, economic and environmental value for all stakeholders. The company has committed to a target [...]
New figures, released by SA Water, indicate a significant decrease in 2022 of sewer blockages caused by unflushable objects in South Australia. A group of unflushable objects, led by wet wipes, cooking fats and oils, and even weird and problematic items such as superhero costumes, were responsible for 1,746 blockages over a six-month period in 2021 – during the same [...]
Jemena and Zinfra have released their 2022 Sustainability Report: A Year of Evolution along with a new online Sustainability Hub. The report highlights steps taken by Jemena and its sister company Zinfra – both part of the SGSPAA Group – to deliver the Group’s Environment, Social and Governance (ESG) Plan throughout 2022. The Group ESG Plan captures activities under way [...]
Unitywater is trialling an oyster reef restoration project, for the first time in Australia, to determine the effectiveness of oysters in filtering nutrients in waterways and to assist Unitywater in achieving its net zero sustainability goals. The restoration project – in partnership with the University of Sunshine Coast, Healthy Land and Water, and OzFish Unlimited – will explore the effectiveness [...]
The Federal Government has released its new Gas Code – a mandatory code of conduct that proposes to establish a price anchor, or mechanism to drag gas prices down – for final consultation from stakeholders. Following significant consultation with gas producers and users since the beginning of 2023, the Gas Code improves upon the approach to implementing reasonable pricing outlined [...]
The latest Clean Energy Australia Report shows that rooftop solar continues to be a significant contributor to Australia's renewable energy sector – accounting for 25.8 per cent of total renewable energy generation in 2022. The report also indicates that 310,000 new rooftop solar systems, with a total capacity of 2.7GW, were added to the grid in 2022, and more than [...]
The Australian Federal Government has officially submitted its annual National Inventory Report to the United Nations (UN), covering emissions estimates from 1990 to 2021 and providing in-depth information on how Australia measures and reports its emissions. This report is the first in the world to meet the emissions reporting requirements of the Paris Agreement. For Australia to attract crucial investment [...]
The New South Wales Department of Planning and Environment (DPE) has invited Griffith City Council to participate in a two-month pilot Network Leak Detection Program. As part of the pilot program, specialist water network leak detection contractors will undertake on-the-ground surveying to identify water leaks in the Griffith Local Government Area (LGA) from 11 April 2023 for a period of [...]
SA Water is inviting South Australians to participate in the planning of Adelaide's water future strategy for the next five decades, through its Resilient Water Futures initiative. The Resilient Water Futures initiative will develop a comprehensive urban water strategy outlining the state’s vision for a sustainable, climate-resilient approach to Adelaide’s water management. Launched late March 2023, the Resilient Water Futures [...]
The 2022 Drinking Water Quality Report details the water quality management system for the 91 locations Power and Water services across the Northern Territory, recognizing Power and Water’s commitment to providing safe, sustainable, and secure drinking water to all Territorians. The annual report provides details about water quality management, including progress on delivering improvements to drinking water quality. Over the [...]
SA Water is trailing the use of drones as a safer and more effective way of taking water samples, particularly from hard to access locations like some parts of the River Murray, to ensure safe, clean drinking water is provided across South Australia. Water sampling is part of the utility’s ongoing, comprehensive water quality monitoring program, with more than 117,000 [...]
The Water Industry Operators Association of Australia (WIOA) is organising an annual competition to determine the best tasting tap water in South Australia. This year's competition will be held in-person at the Murray Bridge Racing Club on 1 March, 2023, after being limited to online events due to COVID-19 restrictions in recent years. From reservoirs to rivers, South Australia’s drinking [...]
24 charges have been laid against United Energy for allowing trees to grow too close to powerlines in high bushfire risk areas. Contact between trees and powerlines can result in fires, electric shock and power outages, which can lead to property damage and, in serious cases, injury and death. Major electricity companies are required to keep trees and vegetation at [...]
Water treatment sludge could be used to prevent 117,000km of sewer pipes in Australia from cracking in future, without any intervention by humans, helping to save $1.4 billion in annual maintenance costs. A world-first project led by University of South Australia sustainable engineering expert, Professor Yan Zhuge, is trialling a novel solution to halt unprecedented levels of corrosion in the [...]
Transgrid has undertaken extensive aerial inspections along 13,000km of transmission lines In preparation for bushfire season, and to ensure its adherence to fire mitigation measures. Transgrid conducted its bushfire safety program from February to November 2022 to ensure safe vegetation clearance and the condition of transmission assets. The assessments, which included 3D laser scanning, aerial imagery analysis, and helicopter inspections, [...]
Melbourne Water will soon introduce new long range CCTV cameras in an effort to better monitor the city’s expansive sewer network. The recently-developed technology will enable Melbourne Water to inspect up to 4km of large trunk sewers (measuring between 2m and 4.5m in width) increasing the utility’s ability to assess and maintain its critical infrastructure. Melbourne Water General Manager Asset [...]
Monitoring critical equipment – especially in hazardous environments – has always been challenging. The longevity and performance of pumps, sealing systems and other equipment are only as good as any maintenance and monitoring programmes. Historically, this has meant meticulous manual inspections and/or data analysis to carry them out at the standard needed to have the required effect. In reality, most [...]
by Annabelle Powell, Journalist, Utility magazine Dams play a critical role in securing our water supply, so it’s vital that issues such as seepage – which threaten their integrity – are detected as early as possible. Here, Utility explores how Hunter Water has employed innovative satellite technology to increase the accuracy of its dam monitoring. Hunter Water has implemented cutting-edge [...]
Safety is our number one priority, as it is for our customers. Arc faults can cause serious injury and even fatalities. Why put personnel in danger when you can install an arc fault contained variable speed drive? Rockwell Automation’s specially designed enclosure now adds another layer of personnel protection in the event of an arcing fault. Variable speed drives have [...]
New technological capabilities are enabling SA Water to save time and money by increasing pump reliability and availability as well as pump performance and lifespan, reducing maintenance times through improved root cause analysis and repetitive preventative maintenance work orders, and optimising maintenance and capital investment.
By Angelo Fiumara, Digital Asset Integration Manager, Essential Energy Essential Energy is an electricity distributor (sometimes referred to as Distribution Network Service Provider or DNSP) responsible for operating and maintaining the electricity distribution network supplying 95 per cent of NSW and parts of southern Queensland. The business is utilising a digital twin to uplift its asset management and operational practices, [...]
By Simon Mezger, Principal Infrastructure Advisory: Utilities, Aurecon The fanfare that surrounds the mobilisation of a new asset is never quite present when it closes. In fact, no one usually remembers the opening because it’s been many decades and a generation of workers ago. Costs to close assets are capital commitments usually viewed as balance sheet liabilities to be minimised. [...]
Imagine a simple solution for fleet management which maximises efficiency, minimises cost and improves the security and safety of your vehicles and drivers. Would you like the solution customised to suit your unique needs? The answer is two10degrees’ award-winning Global Alerting Platform for Fleet solution, which equips clients with tools for emergency alerting, message routing, location tracking, scheduled reporting, dashboard [...]
The most advanced beach monitoring system in the world has been implemented along 30km of Gold Coast coastline to help manage the famous beaches, which attract more than 47 million locals and tourists each year. The work is a collaboration between the University of New South Wales’ Water Research Laboratory and geospatial mapping specialists, Geoplex, who were engaged by the [...]
Energy Queensland’s Technical Training and Apprentices team, alongside the Digital Division, are developing virtual reality (VR) training simulators to provide Ergon Energy and Energex trainees with a safe training environment. Technical Training Business Manager, Stewart MacDonald, and Digital Enablement Specialist, Noeneel Sharma, from the Digital Division have already developed a Polarity VR Training Simulator and are about to deploy their [...]
Vital maps indicating flooded areas of New South Wales were developed in a mammoth 24-hour international effort to help the state’s regional and rural electricity network restore power as quickly as possible, while keeping their crews safe. Using geospatial data from satellites, digital solutions business two10degrees was able to create and integrate up-to-date maps of flooded areas for Essential Energy [...]
Find it faster with RIDGID utility location equipment. RIDGID utility locators feature an easy-to-use visual mapping display that allows the location of utility lines and sondes with confidence. These locators can be used with RIDGID SeeSnake® cameras equipped with sonde transmitters to find the camera head during a pipe inspection. They can also be used in conjunction with a line [...]
Technology has become a major part of our modern world, helping to make life easier and safer for many – and utilities are no different. For Gippsland Water, the implementation of advanced technology into its operations has been a no-brainer, with the water utility embracing the use of drone technology over the past few years to help improve the way [...]
Following a successful rollout of 4,000 smart water meters, with the final 300 remaining to be installed shortly, Leeton Shire Council has now launched the associated MyH2o Customer Portal for residents to access their consumption data. Already around 300 residents and commercial customers have signed up to the portal following initial contact from Leeton Shire Council. As an incentive to [...]
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