Byron Shire Council is leading the way in drought proofing itself through high-level effluent recycling, and there are lessons to be learnt from this by the NSW Government and Sydney Water, according to NSW Greens Upper House MP Ian Cohen.
“I attended the opening of the council’s new Integrated Water Management System at Belongil yesterday and saw a classic departure from the backwards notion that believes we should pump sewage into the ocean and waste it” he said.
“This is no run of the mill Sewage Treatment Plant. It is a closed loop drought proof system. This water can then be reused for a number of purposes, including irrigation and watering of parklands, golf clubs and sporting fields.
“The state of the art effluent recycling and mosaic of coastal wetland ecosystems, which include 24 hectares of restored melaleuca wetland, has the potential to make it a tourist attraction.
“As home to a myriad of water bird species (represented yesterday by some elegant jabirus) this is also a bird watchers’ paradise.
“There is no reason that similar schemes cannot be replicated throughout NSW and especially within Sydney. We would no longer need the ocean outfalls that waste water and pollute the ocean.
“Solutions like energy guzzling desalination plants planned for the Central Coast should not be sought as the answer to water shortages, when recycling is an obviously workable option.
“The NSW Government and Sydney water need to understand that high quality treated effluent is the best constant water resource we have in times of drought,” he said.
Further Information: Michael Hidden 9230 3305 or 0431 320 085
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