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 past few years, Power and Water has developed and implemented a bespoke drinking water quality management system that aligns with industry best practice and responds to the Territory’s unique environments.
Power and Water’s Executive General Manager Water Services, Steven Porter, said, “Power and Water is committed to providing access to safe, sustainable and secure drinking water to all Territorians, regardless of where they live.
“Power and Water’s passionate experts continually strive to improve water quality services across urban and remote communities, and that commitment was recognised with an Organisational Excellence Award at the 2022 NT Water Awards and as a finalist at the OzWater Awards.”
Power and Water has a central role in delivering the NT Government’s $28 million program to improve water quality and security in remote communities, including addressing the high levels of naturally occurring elements like uranium and nitrate in some communities’ drinking water.
“Construction of an ion-exchange water treatment plant in Laramba, about 200km west of Alice Springs, was completed in December 2022,” Mr Porter said.
“The plant, which will reduce the levels of uranium in the community’s water supply, is in the final stages of commissioning.”
Power and Water is also partnering with the University of New South Wales to trial membrane Capacitive Deionisation (mCDI) technology in Ali Curung to remove natural contaminants from groundwater.
Construction of Australia’s largest PFAS treatment plant, located in Katherine, is also complete and in the final stages of commissioning.
Securing the Darwin region’s future water sources is a significant focus for Power and Water.
The endorsement of the business case for the return to service of Manton Dam and the development of the Adelaide River Off-stream Water Storage (AROWS) projects was a major milestone in 2022.
“Power and Water first identified AROWS as a water source option in 2013, and this is an exciting step forward in bringing these projects to life to meet future water demand,” Mr Porter said.
“We are proud to have an essential role in providing sustainable and secure drinking water so that our communities can realise economic and population growth.”
