Victorian Minister for Water Peter Walsh has inspected the final stage of the $6.7 million pipeline that will provide industrial and residential estates in Melbourne’s South East with Class A recycled water for non-drinking uses.
The 8.5 kilometre pipeline will connect the Logis industrial estate and Meridian residential estate with Class A recycled water supplied by the Eastern Treatment Plant in Bangholme.
Mr Walsh said 184 Logis business lots and 274 Meridian residential lots will be the first new customers since the Eastern Treatment Plant was upgraded to produce Class A recycled water.
“The Victorian Coalition Government has committed to smarter planning and better use of all Melbourne’s water sources, including treated recycled water, for non-drinking purposes to reduce demand on our precious drinking water supplies,” Mr Walsh said.
“Dual-pipe systems at the Logis and Meridian estates will see the recycled water used outdoors for purposes like car washing and garden watering, and also indoors for toilet flushing.”
Mr Walsh said the joint project by Places Victoria, South East Water and Melbourne Water to connect the Logis and Meridian estates was paving the way for other recycled water initiatives in the area.
“There are a number of other projects in the early planning stages that will see the use of Class A recycled water produced at the Eastern Treatment Plant steadily increase in the future,” Mr Walsh said.
“It is estimated future planned recycled water schemes will see more than five billion litres of Class A recycled water from the Eastern Treatment Plant used annually by households and businesses in Melbourne’s South East.”
Mr Walsh said the Coalition Government’s recently released Melbourne’s Water Future draft strategy clearly articulated the benefits of planning and implementing whole-of-water-cycle management in new estates like Logis and Meridian.
“This year it is predicted Melbourne will use 374 GL of high-quality drinking water from our dams, but much of that will be used for non-drinking purposes. At the same time Melbourne will dispose of 443GL of wastewater and generate 440GL of stormwater,” Mr Walsh said.
“We need to be smarter with all our water sources, and Melbourne’s Water Future is the strategy that will deliver ample water for all of Melbourne’s growing needs, at a lower price than the approach adopted by the former State Labor Government.”
