Water Journal May 2002 by australianwater

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INTRODUCING

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Volume 29 No 3 May 2002 Journal of the Australian Water Association

Editorial Board F R B ishop, C hairman B N Anderson , R Considine, W J Dulfe r, G Finke, G Finlayson, G A H older, B Labza, M Muntisov, P Nadebaum, J D Parker, J Rissman , F Roddick, G Ryan, S Gray L "- Warer is a re fereed journal. This symbol indicates chat a paper has bee n refereed.

Submissions Submissions should be made co EA (Bob) Swinton, Technical Editor (see below for details).

Managing Editor

CONTENTS 2

FROM THE FEDERAL PRESIDENT: Ruby Jubilee - ATime to Reflect

FROM THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR: Where's that Leap?

INTERNATIONAL AFFILIATES: 3rd World Congress a Success

MY POINT OF VIEW: Raising the Water Level in Victoria, Fiona McLeod

CROSSCURRENT: Water News Around the Nation

Peter Stirling

Technical Editor EA (Bob) Swinton 4 Pleasant View C res, Wheelers Hill Vic 3 150 Tel/ Fax (03) 9560 4752 Email: bswinton@bigpond.net.au

WATER 20

Water Production

D Comrie, S Eva n s, R Gale, P Kitney

Hallmark Editions PO Ilox 84, Hampton , Vic 3188 Level I, 99 Ilay Street, Ilrighcon, Vic 3186 Tel (03) 9530 8900 Fax (03) 9530 891 1 Email: hallmark@halledic.com.au G raphic design: Mitzi M ann

ENVIRO 2002 27

ENVIRO 2002 HAILED A SUCCESS

ENSURING SUSTAINABILITY - PARADIGM SHIFTS AND BIG HAIRY GOALS The keynote opening speech

Water Advertising

Dr G Ha rris

Natio nal Sales Manager: Brian Rault T el (03) 9530 8900 Fax (03) 9530 89 11 M obile 0411 354 050 Email: braulc@halledit.com.au

Water (ISSN 0310 - 0367)

is published eight times a year in the months of February, March, May, June, August, Septembe r, November and December.

Australian Water Association

ABN 78 096 035 773 Barry Norman

Executive Director C hris Davis

BUSINESS

M Thompson

WASTEWATER: TECHNICAL NOTE 45

AUSTRALIAN WATER ASSOCIATION

Subscriptions Ware, is sent co all AW A members eight times a year. It is also available via subscription.

Uti1 PROTECTING ENVIRONMENTAL RIVER FLOWS WHILE CATERING FOR WATER SUPPLY DEMAND An innovative operation and environmental monitoring strategy for river abstraction

AWA

Australian Water Association (AW A) assumes no responsibility for opinions or statements of facts expressed by contributors or advertisers. Editorials do not necessarily represent official AW A policy. Advertisements are included as an infom1ation service to readers and are reviewed before publication co ensure relevance to the water environm ent and objectives of AW A. All material in Warer is copyright and should not be reproduced wholly or in part w ithout the written permission of the Managing Edicor.

SOME VIEWS FROM OVERSEAS Report by EA (Bob) Swinton and B McRae

IWA WORLD WATER CONGRESS AT ENVIRO 2002 Report by EA (Bob) Sw in ton

PO Box 388, Artarmon, NSW 1570 Tel +612941 3 1288 Fax: (02) 9413 1047 Email: info@awa.asn.au

Federal President

', TASTE AND ODOUR IN DRINKING WATER: PERCEPTION VERSUS REALITY Many negative opinions are influenced by historic perceptions

AUTOMATIC AERATION OF A SHALLOW WASTEWATER STORAGE Aeration can work even when the maximum depth is only 7 metres F L Burns

CLEANER PRODUCTION 47

~ THE ASEAN COUNTRIES AusAID projects in Indonesia, Malaysia, the Phillipines, Thailand and Vietnam P R Nadeba um, TC Chon g, AG Cikalov

~ SUSTAINABLE OPERATION OF DISTILLERIES

Distillery wastewater solutions in Malaysia and Thailand T C Chon g, PR Nadebaum, AG Cika lov

~ THE DATONG GASIFICATION PLANT Coal gasification is notoriously dirty, both for air and water pollution P Baker, A Baker

Visit the Australian Water Association HOME PAGE and access news, calendars, bookshop and over 100 pages of information at

OUR COVER: E nviro 2002 Convention and Exh ibition, held in Melbourne in early April, has been hailed as a huge success. Pictu red is the impressive display of posters f rom the poster presentations. Photo courtesy of Q11itz. WATER MAY 2002

FROM

THE

PRESIDENT

RUBY JUBILEE A TIME TO REFLECT AWA has been in existence now for 40 years (initially as the Australian Water and Wastewater Association) but continuously growing and increasing its sphere of interest and influence. Forty years is a long time, but there are still several founding members around and, more remarkably, some are still active. For example, Frank Bishop, Chair of our Journal Committee, was one of those founding members who got together in 1962, when relative youngsters like me were not yet in high school. Reaching a milestone like this has prompted me to reflect on where we've come from and where we want to go. The impetus for establishing A WW A came largely from the unmet need for a multidisciplinary association that would serve everyone engaged in the challenging task of putting water infrastructure into Australian cities. In that era there were neat boxes into which activities fitted and clearly AWWA served those people in the urban water supply and sewerage boxes. T he Association had professional aspirations, so it allowed entry only to 'suitably qualified' people. Within two years, the first National Convention was held, in Canberra and, after a longer pause, in 1976, this journal, Water, first appeared. The Convention rotated and was managed by the host branch, but the journal was managed o ut of Melbourne and stayed there. The engine room of AWWA was undoubtedly in its branches, of which there were just three to start with, gradually expanding to the current eight by 1972, ie one per state/territo1y. Enthusiastic volunteers drove everything and their efforts helped them to network among themselves, as well as assisting the Association. After 20 years, things began to change. The dreaded economic ratio nali st movement struck previously impregnable utilities; money got tighter; people had to produce more and had less time to commit to volunteer activities, so a part-time secretary was engaged to help fill some holes where volunteers had been. A WW A had a strategic planning exercise and concluded that it should open up membership beyond 'professionals' and chat it should address a wider agenda than j ust water supply and sewerage. T hat process has been ongoing since then and it has been positive. 2

WATER MAY 2002

By 1992, we hired our first full- time Executive Director, Chris Davis, which enabled Peter Hughes to retire properly. AWWA continued to mature, with the expe1ience of all its members, the maturing of the industry and the synergy between effective volunteers and a paid staff team.

Barry Norman

The branches still provided most of the energy, but a growing staff complem ent supplemented volunteer activities. Our first, part-time Executive Director, Peter Hughes, was engaged and he hired Margaret Bates, our first Office Manager. The balance in Branch-Federal relations swung more towards the dreaded 'Feds' for several activities. Our Handbook (now the Water Directo1y) first appeared in 1988, and the national office first began running the AWWA convention in 1995. Evolution of the Association paralleled that of the water industry in many ways: the imperative to work smarter, to ensure relevance and to do more with less. Branches viewed Federal funding with son1e resentment and silos were created around some activities. Debates raged (and still do) over allocation of surpluses from activities.

POSTCARDS FROM ABROAD To expats. On occasion we have published a couple of pages from Aussies working in water overseas, and would like to fit in some more as space permits. Just keep them short, snappy, and related to any of our themes. Email to bswinton@bigpond.net.au

In recent years we've changed our name (dropping the slightly problematic word waste1-11ater); adopted a new mission (promoting sustainable management of water) which is simple, inspirational and generic; revamped our governance to ensure an effective, committed Board of management; converted to a company limited by guarantee; and aligned our budget with a good strategic plan. We are working now to ensu re that Branch budgets and plans are well aligned with national ones, so that AW A achieves maximum results for members, with minimum wasted energy. Thanks to the recently-completed We All Use Water package, we are now making inroads on community education - a crucial area for the futu re . Where are we going now? Thanks to a clear-thinking Board, input from Branch Presidents and our recent member survey, it's become clear we must continue to strive for aspirational goals. Moreover, we must ensure that individuals continue to find AW A relevant, interesting and worth joining. AWA has achieved a reputation in the industry, and with governments, as a credible and constructive player; what it needs now is a higher profile in the community. In associations the most powerful recruiting tool is word-of-mouth. I will work with our leadership and staff to offer the best possible basket of member benefits (we are reviewing them now), but I need your help to encourage colleagues and friends to join the AWA family. AWA as a whole has made a commitment to invigorate its membership activities and numbers, but the energy level of members overall is critical too - let's really put AWA on the map. Barry Norman

CROSSCURRENT

" This eliminates any unnecessary and costly further testing of water that contains non-toxic algae." Ms Fergusson 's test has attracted international conunercial interest, and researchers are currently looking to develop a field-testing kit that can be simply used by remote communities. She was presented w ith her $2 ,000 Award as part of the closing session of Enviro 2002 at the Melbourne Convention Centre. MELBOURNE WATER TO STUDY WASTEWATER RECYCLING

Melbourne Water is conunissioning a research project to examine the potential for aquifer storage and recovery of recycled water as part of its commitment to recycle 20% of M elbo urne's effiuent by 201 0. T he research project w ill identify regions suitable for aquifer storage and recovery , and outline the possible issues which may arise from it. Expressions of interest in the project close on 17 May. For further information, contact Peta Maddy on (03) 9235 7209 . NEW DIRECTOR SOUGHT FOR CRC

The Cooperative R esearch Centre for Catchment Hydrology is seeking a new director following the announcement of Professor Russell Mein's impending retirement. Professor Mein will be leaving the position of director as of 30 June. The CRC is in the third year o f its current seven-year term, with its missio n being the prediction of the hydrologic impacts of land-use change at whole- of-catchment scal e, w ith this kno wledge ultimately being integrated into simulation packages. The position will be widely advertised and further information is available from the CRC Business Manager, John M olloy, on (03) 990 5 5068.

Atlantis Eco Paver 1st Stage Stops 100% of gross pollutants from entering the system, while infiltrating water at 20 l/sec/m 2•

Atlantis EcoSoil 2nd Stage Captures, treats and filters nutrients and biologicaly brakes down toxic elements.

BUSINESS BRIEFS • GHD has announced a merger with the Geo-Eng Group. The move adds mining and geology expertise in particular to GHD, along with about 100 additional staff. Geo-Eng has two offices in Victoria and one each in Perth, Sydney and Albury-Wodonga. O verseas projects include a joint venture specialising in water management systems and services, including remote monitoring and telemetry in Wuhan, China and a joint venture in Beijing providing coal mining and water supply consulting services. • Engineering and construction contracting group, Clough Limited reported that its net profit rose 30.1% to S13.4 million for the six months to December 3 1, 2001. Turnover increased 6.6% to $346.5 million with work in hand up 19% to S852. 7 million. • The Essential Services Commission (Victoria) has released its 6th annual comparative Performance Report of Melbourne's three retail water businesses (City West Water, South East Water, and Yarra Valley Water). The report, for the year to June 2001, shows Melbourne's water customers continue to receive improved levels of service o n most performance indicators measured. Copies at http://www.reggen. vic.gov.au/ water_10.htm • Transfield Construction and Montgomery Watson have formalised their three-year association in the specialist water & wastewater industry by fonning a fully integrated customer-focused joint venture (TMWJV) which will bid for and deliver water & wastewater infrastructure projects in the eastern states. lei£teper@mwhglobal.com

WATER

TASTE AND ODOUR IN DRINKING WATER: PERCEPTION VERSUS REA[ITY D Comrie, S Evans, R Gale, P Kitney Abstract

Town By Town Results

water. In 1997 custo mers ranked taste, smell , and colour as 1, 3 and 4 respectively as the most critical issues for Western Water. In 1998 the same issues were ranked 1, 2 and 6 respectively. In 2000 W estern Water establi sh e d a two-part project to determine if the considerable capital expe nditure in water q uali ty improvem ents had yielded both techni cally better tastin g and smelling water and an improvement in the customer's satisfaction with water quality.

Western Water's custom er satis60 faction surveys conducted in 1997 I Blind Test and 1998 indicated that customer 40 I Branded Test % Chanr;e dissatisfaction in relation to taste 20 and odo ur was prominent and far excee ded business custom e r 0 -20 complaint records. Since this time Western Water has endeavoured - 40 to capture and address w ater quality complaints. ll,.~6. r.-q,;,, .s-iq,b '°•,z,1r,;4, ~r~-60 ~ .i., ~~/ IJ e;, .,,'), •1Jq IJ,-IJ,, ~IJ.(-/1, Customer p ercep tion was .,~~ ¾ r,,,., ,, •e<4,IJ te,determined via m arket resea rch which reached two major concluFigure 1 . Water quality assessment sio ns. First, the c u st o m e r 's perception of the "water brand" The Changing Regulatory Climate affects the custom er's view of the W estern Water's brand and achieven1ents, A review of the current water quality qualitative aspects of the water tasted. improved actu al performance through a standards undertaken by the Victorian Secondly, there appears to be a strong review of disinfection practices, estabDepartment of Human Services (DHS) trend am ongst customers to drink less lishment of a mains cleaning program, staff and th e D epartment of Natural Resources water fro m the tap and m ore water from training and fi ve year capital works and Environment (DNRE) has seen the perceived " pure" sources such as botcled improvement program. drafting of a new regulatoty framewo rk spring water. fo r drinking water quality in Victoria Introduction These fi n di n gs highlight ed that proposed for implementation in 2003. The Since its formation in 1995, Western customer perception of improved water issue of managing taste and odours in Water, which supplies potable water to a quality lags behind improvements made drinking water supplies is an essential number of townships som e 50 to 150 km through capi tal works an d operational requirement of the fram ework placing west of Melbourne, has implemented changes and many of the negative opinions emphasis on acceptable water quality are influenced by historic perceptions. The m easures designed to provide customers through co mmunity cons ultation. w ith drinking water that complies with "reali ty" of taste and odour was assessed The new framework recognises that taste by a Flavour Profile Analysis. health and non-health parameters of and odour are not readily measurable as relevant guidelines and regulato1y requireFollowing these investigations Western chemical compo nents of the w ater, m ents. Water was able to implement a number however they are the primary criteria of strategies to improve the taste and Customer surveys conducted in 1997 consum ers use to judge the quality and and 1998 indicate significant dissatisfaction odour of their water supplies. These acceptability of drinking water. A suitable with the non-health- related aesthetic strategies included improved percep tion protocol for m easuring this param eter, throu g h more active promoti on of parameters of Western Water's d rinki ng acceptable to both the consumers and to the regulator, will need to be developed by each water supplier. Acceptability in Table 1. Water Quality Assessment Criteria meeting the framework w ill be measured on the needs and expectations of customers. Qualitative Aspect Characteristic The W estern Water "reality vs perception" Taste Taste bad/ good, cheap/expensive, and stale/fresh study has the added benefit of meeting the Quality Lots of chem icals/ free of chemica ls, murky/clear smel ls/ free of smell requirements of the new framework.

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Perception

Low quality/high quality, attractive/unattractive, cheap/ expensive

Consumption

Wou ld/ wouldn 't give it to kids and or visitors and or se lf

Water Type

Ordinary/special water, processed/natural water hard/soft water

Type of brand

Brand I trust/ don't trust, good reputation/bad reputation, old fashioned brand/ modern brand

Brand Image

Poor value for money /high value for money, brand that stands out/doesn't stand out, tired brand/go ahead brand, cheap/expensive brand advertised brand/not advertised brand

WATER MAY 2002

Perception Study Market research company, Galeforce Strategic Marketing, was engaged co undertake a W ater Preference study fo r all m aj or towns served by Western Water. The purpose o f the behavioural research was to distinguish between the

WATER Western Water's products achieved an excellent rating in the blind taste tests, (often % change outscoring the Melbourne +4 Water brand), it is the -14 emotional associations with -60 the brand, or sou rce, w hen revealed, that influenced the +54 customers' attitude to their -34 local tap water both positively -49 and negatively. +18 The major exception to +5 this pattern showed up in Ramsey where the blind test rated the lowest of all waters sampled whereas once branded the results were the highest of all Western Water towns. One explanation fo r this sign ificant exceptio n could be the promotion that accompanied the commissioning of the Romsey water filtration plant in M arch 1998. The Minister commemorated the commissioning of the plant with a local celebration and an official launch. The plant uses membrane filtration technology and at the time was promoted a "chemical free" water quality solution. By contrast the recently completed Woodend water treatment plant, commissioned in 1999, was not similarly promoted and th e

im.age perception of water quality and the reality.

Table 2 . Overall water quality assessment Mean score by Town

Methodology

Town

Blind Test

Branded test

The research principally 4.44 4.63 Bacchus Marsh involved focus groups 6.17 5.33 Gisborne/Macedon comprised of selected groups 7.50 3.00 Melton of Western Water's 5.69 3.69 Romsey customers. Prior to the focus 3.88 5.88 Sunbury Melbourne supply gro up desk research was 3.62 7.15 Woodend conducted to determine the 6.51 Melbourne Water 5.53 extent of similar research 7.49 Mt Frankl in 7.12 elsewhere in the world and in depth interviews held with Western Water staff to Analysis determine the technical o r "rational" The rating scales produced a relatively reasons for variable water quality. In total large ·a mount of data and wh ile it was not 120 customers (20 from eac h town) were the aim of the study to undertake a 1igorous involved in the focus groups. statistical exercise because of the qualitative Focus Groups

The pu rpose of this research was to ide ntify the "emotional" issues, w hich might affect customer's response to water qu ality. Customers were identified at random and groups were fo rmed for B acchu s Marsh, G isborne/Macedon, Melton, Ramsey, Sunbury and Woodend. Half the groups comprised female and the other half comprised male heads of household (identified as bill- payers). The groups were also selected on the basis of psychographic rather than dem.ographic profile (Levine 1989). While the method of research chosen was a qualitative one, the intention of the study was to reveal possible variances caused by customer perception and this required quantita ti ve me asurement. Customers were consequently given two quantitative tasting sequ ences. The fi rst sequence was a simple blind sampling assessment where respondents were asked to rate each sample of drinking water blind, that is they were unaware of where th e water had come from or what brand or source it was associated with. Once this sequence was completed, respondents were then asked to sample water from the same three samplings (although they were not aware of this) and this time were told the brand, or source before testing and rating each sample. At each phase the Western Water samples were drawn from a selected cu stomer's house tap in that town on the day of sampling and for benchmark comparison the Melbourne Water source supply was taken from the interface to Sunbu1y and bottled Mt Franklin spring water was also used. Respondents were given 50 mL of each water sample to look at, smell and taste in a 215 mL clear plastic cup and asked to rate each sample using a ten point semantic differential scale. The criteria are listed in Table 1.

nature of focus groups, it was felt that the data should be formalised. Having done this, the data summarised in Table 2 and Figure 1 indicates a picture of relativity that is statistically reliable. They are the average of a number of qualities measured showing the mean sco re out of a possible 10 points where 0 is the most unfavourable and 10 is the most favourable. The study confirmed the initial hypothesis that even though some of

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WATER MAY 2002

WATER

response to the branded water was negative. The report also observed the apparent paradox that despite the completion of a number of capital works treatment improvements, customers continue to turn away from consuming household tap water because of the embedded negative impacts on the aesthetic qualities left by residual chlorine.

Mouthfeel

Flavour Wheel • •

Taste Mouthfeel

•

Odour

Bitter

Mouthfeel

Chlorlnous I Ozonous

Sour/ Aci dic

Grassy/Hay Straw I Woody Marshy I swampy Septic I Sulphurous

ChemlcaUHydroca

Reality Study Methodology

Over a three-month period 28 sites from the targeted supplies of Figure Melton, Sunbury, Woodend and Lancefield were analysed using Flavour Profile Analysis (FP A). FPA is a standard method for identifying sample taste(s) and odour(s) via a group of trained panellists (Clesceri et al, 1998). The samples are tested undiluted and each panellist independently assesses each sample for detectable taste, odour and mouthfeel descriptor and characterises them according to the Taste and Odour Wheel reproduced in Figure 2 from Mallevialle et al, (1995). Classification of tastes and odours indicates possible sources and may indicate the best method to eliminate them from water. The FPA method allows more than one flavour, odour attribute or mouthfeeling fac tor to be determined per sample and each attributes strength to be measured. The strength of a taste or odour is assessed according to an intensity scale ranging from O to 12 and corresponding

T he final taste classification category includes numerous descriptors, whi ch cannot be classified as true taste sensations. Yet, these descriptors are more readily detected by mouth than nose. Descriptors that fall w ithin this group that was identified in this FPA were burning and bitter aftertastes. Samples with a free chlorine residual are often associated with these aftertastes.

Fishy

Odours

In the FPA the four odour classifications in order of detection were Chlorinous, Earthy/Musty/ descriptors ranging from odour free to Mouldy, Medicinal/Phenolic/Alcoholic strong. and Marshy /Swampy /Septic/Sulphurous. Results In all four of the regions that were FPA analysis was undertaken in Melton, tested using FP A, chlorine is added as the Sunbury, Woodend and Lancefield base disinfectant. A chlorinous odour in between May and June 2000. The results the FPA was detected in 7 4 of the 83 of the analysis follow and are summarised samples. The intensity of the odour in Table 3. ranged from threshold to moderate. In Melton and Sunbmy zones ammonia is Significance of the Tastes and added to create chloramines, which serves Odours Detected as the primary disinfectant in these zones. Tastes For Lancefield and Woodend chlorine is People can differentiate between four the sole disinfection agent. taste sensations. These are sour, sweet, salty Earthy or musty odours are frequently and bitter. Routinely reference standards isolated in raw and drinking waters. An of the four basic tastes are used for Earthy odour in the FP A was detected in calibration of panellists conducting FPA. Tastes in drinking waters may be the result 23 of the 83 samples. The intensity of the of dissolved i n o rganic or organic odour ranged from threshold to weak. The substances. In the FPA the three tastes earthy smell was often detected in associidentified in order of detection were bitter, ation with chlorinous odours, as often the salty and sour. organic components reacting with the chlorine also has an Table 3: Summary of the number of samples found to contain taste and odours per zones earthy or musty smell. by FPA Alternatively the odour may be the release of odourous metaboPERCENTAGE OF TESTS SAMPLED 1 it es suc h as Geosmin or MELTON SUNBURY WOODEND LANCEFIELD TOTAL 2-Methylisoborneol (MIB) by Population 37,000 29,000 4,700 1,600 72,300 microorganisms suc h as Number of Samples Collected 27 27 14 15 83 cyanobacteria or actinomycetes. Ratio Samples/Cust omer 1:4,000 1:3,200 1:940 1:320 1 : 2,000 Medicinal or solventy and Tastes Marshy/Swampy/Septic/ Sour 4% 7% 29% 7% Sulphurous odours were rarely 10% detected in the supplies. The Bitter 96% 59% 100% 73% 81% positive samples for medicinal or Salty 26% 30% 29% 20% 27% solvency odours in the FPA had Sweet 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% significant free chlorine residuals. Odour Trihalomethanes (THMs) a toxic Earthy/Musty/Mouldy 11% 30% 57% 27% 28% chlorination by-product can Chlorinous 100% 78% 100% 80% 89% impart a medicinal odour to the Grassy/ Hay/Straw/Wood 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% treated drinking water Marshy/Swampy/Septic /Sulphurous 0% 0% 0% 7% 1% (Mallevialle & Suffett, 1987). Fragrant (Vegetable or Flowery) 0% 0% 0% The presence of elevated levels 0% 0% Fishy of THMs was verified in a 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% subsequent di sinfection byMedicinal/Phenolic/Alcoholic 0% 0% 0% 13% 2% product su rvey. A sulphide Chemical/Hydrocarbon/Miscellaneous 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% odour was detected at one of the

WATER MAY 2002

2. Taste and Odour Wheel

WATER

bores at Lancefield. This is quite common for groundwater sources and the sulphid e is rapidl y oxidised back into o dourless sulphate.

Palatability Comparisons â&#x20AC;˘

AYTaste lnlt n1lty per sample

â&#x20AC;˘ Av Odour Intensity

Comparison Data from the Targeted Supplies

persamplâ&#x20AC;˘

water quality has been developed to focus Western Water's actions. Western Water's five year goals is "Our water is good to drink and our customers tell us that they trust us with thei r water". To achieve this objective a medium term st ra te gy was developed and incorpo rated into t he ex i sting water qua l i t y improvement and marketing strategies. The strategy incl udes

Taste and odours were detected in all the zones tested. Each of the zones was supplied from different rese rvoir s and exp e ri e n ced different taste and odours in the reticulation. A method to compare Capital Works and Operational the relative caste and odour of each Improvements of the zones was developed. The A comprehensive capital works Figure 3. Palatability comparison of the water supplies tastes and odours from each zone program of treatment plant were summed to develop an upgrades and system sup ply to reduce the amount of"chemica] " taste average taste and odour intensity per sample improvements has been developed fo r the and odour in the water. H owever, even for comparative purposes with threshold next fi ve years to meet W estern Water's if Western Water were successful in intensity considered as 1. The higher the improving the aesthetic characteristics of water quali ty objective. The staged intensity the less palatable the water. In capital works w ill be coordi nated w ith the water, th e perception of the Western o rder of decreasing palatability the water operational programs to provide improved Water brand is generall y unfavourable supplies ranked in the following order; water quality through the development of w ith its customers. Therefore, fu rther S unbury, Lancefield, M el ton and water quality risk management plans, staff capital expenditure witho ut consideration W oodend (as is evident in Figu re 3) . trai ning, systematic cleaning of water of the customer's needs or perceptions Causes of the Taste and Odours Identified in the FPA

The FPA taste and odour investigation in the zones of Melton, Sunbury, Woodend and Lancefield revealed that all supplies expe rien ce taste and odou r problems in varying degrees. Indications from the types of tastes, odours and mouthfeeis encountered by the panel conclude that chlorinous followed by earthy or musty odours are the major issues with the suppli es. The likely causes of these flavours is multidimensional involving the quality of the raw water, the design of th e treatment and reticulation systems, a build up of organic/inorganic material in th e pipelin es and operational procedures including the disinfection protocol. Bringing Perceptions and Reality Together

The towns, W oodend and Melton, where the rankings in the reality study were poorest (Figure 4) were also towns that had the greatest negative brand shift identified in Table 1. From the results of the reali ty study it could be co ncluded that the grounds for the negative brand image were based on past exp erience. Where water quality improvements have taken place customers need to be given a reason to change their perception.

would be wasted. To address the issues raised by the resea rch findin gs an overa ll m ission for

mains, tighter control of disin fection residua ls, improved operational performance an d complaint monitoring.

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Conclusion The diagnostic tests showed that tailored system operational procedures and capital improvements must be undertaken WATER MAY 2002

WATER

Western Water's Brand

Where appropriate, Western Water proposes to refer to "filtrati on plants" rather than "treatment plants" in the promotional literature. T he preference for filtered water observed in the market research will be capitalised on when explaining W estern W acer's processes. A strategy has been developed to be active in the community. W estern Water needs to earn its communities' crust by being open and communicative.

Blling Perceptions & Reality Together

Clesceri , L.S. , Greenberg, A.E & Eaton, A.D., eds. 1998. Standards

Methods for the Exm11ination of Water a11d Wastewater. 20th Edition. American 6 Public H ealth Association, American Water Works Association and Water 4 Environment Federation, Baltimore, 2 Maryland. 0 Levine, M Tire F11t11re of Va/11es St11dies. -2 International Public Relations Review .4 Vol 12, No 4 1989. -6 Mallevialle, J & Suffet, l.H. , eds. 1987. -8 Ide1n!ficario11 and Treat111e111 of Tastes and -10 Odors i11 Drinking Water. A WW A Melton Sunbury Woodend R esearch Foundation and Lyonnaise des Eaux, D enver, Colorado. Figure 4. Percept ions and rea lity comparisons between Ma llevialle, J ., Suffct, I.H & Town by Town Approach and water supplies Kawczynski, E., eds. 1995. Ad11a11ces in Community Consultation on Tasre-mrd-Odor Treat111e11t and Co11trol. Acknowledgements Standards A WWA R esearc h Fou nd at io n a nd Western Water's strategy needs to Thanks to the staff ofWSL Consultants Lyonnaise des Eaux, Denver, Colorado. 8

address each town's issues individually to meet their different expectations and provide a reason to change perception, w ith continu ed negotiation w ith consumers and communi ties concerning the acceptabili ty of non- health related water quality standards to meet the proposed new regulatory framework for D rinking Water Quality in Victoria.

I Blind Tut I Branded Test Palatabillty Scor

and Western Water w ho assisted with the study and to those customers who participated in the project.

References Australian Research Centre for W ater in Society

Drinki11g Water Aesthetics: A S11111111ary ef an lmegrated Methodology to Detem1i11e Co1111111111ity Prefere,rces m,d Perceptions. CSIR.0 1999.

Contact Acromet for further information: Acromet (Aust) Pty Ltd. Melbourne Ph: (03) 9544 7333 Fax (03) 9543 6706 Sydney Ph: (02) 9682 1488 Fax (02) 9682 4580 E-mail:chemex@acromet.com.au Distributors Nationally.

WATER MAY 200 2

The Authors Dean Comrie, is at WSL Consultants, phone 61 3 9429 4666, fax 61 3 9429 2294 , e mail dcomrie@wsl.com.au. Suzanne Evans and Peter Kitney are at Western Water; Rod Gale is at Galeforce Strategic M arketing.

1l1l1l1l11i•

---

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ENVIRO

2002

ENVIR0 2002 HAILED A SUCCESS B y an y ya rdstick that yo u care to use, En v iro 2 002 w as a m o n u m enta l Ga rgantuan - event for the water industry and for the broader environmental sector. It was unquestionably the largest environmen tal even t of its type ever held in Australia. T he raw statisti cs tell th e story. T h ere were 1071 presenters during th e fo ur day event which attracted 2650 conference delegates from 75 cou ntries. Workshops and sessions we re held both in the M elbou rne C on ventio n C entre and the co n fe rence rooms within the M elbou rne Exhibition Centre building in which were ho used the accompanyin g exhib ition. C lose to 2 ,500 trade visitors travelled co see the exhibition and co talk with the 244 companies and organisati ons - manned by aro und 1700 staffe rs - about their producrs and services. le was onl y second time chat the fo u r major en viro nm ental orga nisation s has come together to stage the en viro eve nt - the first b eing Enviro 2000 in Sydn ey. Participating o rgan isatio ns w ere th e Wa ste M ana ge m ent Assoc iation of Australia, Australi an Wate r Asso ciation (AWA), th e C lean Ai r Society of Australia and New Zealand , En vironment Business Australia. Principal sponsors we re the Victo rian Governme nt, E n vi ro n m ent Australia, Coll ex O nyx, and Vi vendi W ater. Th ey were joined by th e Internatio nal W ater Associ ation (IWA) w hich held its 3rd World Water Congress as pa rt of the event. M ore than Âˇ1600 interna tio nal delegates attended.

â&#x20AC;˘

Victoria 's Premier, Steve Bracks, addresses participants at Enviro 2002.

Keynote spea ke rs at the convention included C S[RO 's G raham H anis, author Paul Haw ken and, Bill R ees - creato r of th e 'Ecologica l Fo otprint' concept . Execu tive D irecto r of the Au stralian W ater Associatio n, C hris D avis, said th e 2002 En viro convention had a mu ch larger scope than the 2001 con ventio n w h ich attracted 1200 d elegates. " I t's been a real landmark ," he said. In the water fi eld , M r Davis said it appeared Australian business was at the cutting edge. The fo ur- day conventi on in M elbo urn e had put many issues on the table and the commo n th eme app eared co

have been the topi c o f sustainability, he said . Mr Davis said the 2004 convention location had not bee n fi nalised yet but would be in eith er M elbourne or Sydney. President of the 3rd !WA W orld W ater C ongress, Dr D avid Garman, said the eve nt was the largest e nviro nm ental trade sho w ever held in Australia and was now an establ ished part of the natio n 's environmen t business landscape. Dr Garman sa id international delegates had received fi rst-hand exposu re to Au stra l ia n t ec hn o log ies and t h at n etworking amo ng delegates had been invaluable fro m bo th trade and tech nica l points o f view. Enviro 2002 Organising Com m ittee C hair, John Parker, said that the event has "exceeded o u r wildest expectati ons and stimulated an eno rm o us am ou n t o f b usin ess activity. O n behalf of th e five o rganising associati ons, I wou ld like to th ank everyone who contributed to th e success of this event. Everyone w ho p articip ate d h as sec ure d so m eth ing valuable fro m it ." Mr Parker said that " Delega tes take away a wealth of know ledge fro m th e sessions they attended, th e people they talked to and m ore than 100 pla tform and poster presentations provided in both hard copy and C D -R O M fo rmats. T he valu e of th is sto re o f ' live' kno w ledge fo r use in th eir day-to-day work is im measurable." WATER MAY 2002

ENVIRO

2002

ENSURlÂˇNG SUSTAINABILITY PARADIGM SHIFTS AND BIG HJIIRY GOALS Opening Speech of Enviro 2002 Dr Graham Harris, Chairman of Flagship Programs, CSIRO Despite the b est efforts of th e Pollyannas, the "growth at all costs" merchants and some recent statements by sceptical environmentalists, there is much evidence to show that there are major regional and g lob al environmental problems. Y es, we have made progress in some areas, because of a lot of hard work - but there is still much to do. We urgently need to develop a new appreciation of complexity and a new environmental ethic if we are co achieve sustainability. In terms of intergenera tional equity we have real problems. Some estimates of global population growth indicate that the human population m ight level off in the next fifty years - even so we will require double the present supp ly of energy, materials and particularly water, which is the big issue for the next 50 years. Global and nationa l sustainability is the biggest challenge we face in the 21st century - and frankly I think while Australia does many things well, and we lead the world in some respects, we are still responding too slowly to the challenge. Australia is a continent rich in natural resources but th ey are being used profligately. Our policies and actions fail co reflect the urgency of the global situation. As a result we are m issing many opportunities. Have you noticed that the world is changing? Attitudes to sustainability are slowly starting to turn. The costs of globalisation and economic efficiency on society are too high and the environmental consequences are too great. What were fringe ideas at the margins of the "modern" society are becoming mainstream. We now live at the end of the age where greed was good but Australia is not spotting the trends quickly enough. Advocates of yet more river diversions abound and there arc still those who believe that the act of building a dam This is a much edited and shortened version. The full version is available at www .csiro.a u \news\speeches\ GrahamHarris_enviro2002.htm 28

WATER MAY 2 002

Dr Graham Harris

magically brings water to fi]J it! We have carried out some of the world's largest habitat fragmentation experiments, and it is still going on in some States. Destruction of th e native bush and removal of deeprooted vegetation have led to widespread dry land salinity. Catchment land use and water quality have bee n co mpromised across huge regions of chis w ide, brown land. All this is documented in th e recent National Land and Water Resources Audit and the State of the Environment Report released rccencly. Even sen ior government Ministers have admitted that business as usual is not an option. Water is the key to all this and so is the loss of biodiversity - because biodiversity isn't just parrots, wombats and frogs; biodiversity is the function which cleans up our mess, it ensures sustainability. Globalisation and the rise of the market have seen rights ma rkets widely espoused as a means of managing natural resources. However, the stock of natural assets is fixed and is owned by no one. Therefore it has a zero va lue and as a result is abused and misused. Many of our present incentive schemes are either

contradictory or they distort sustainable outcomes. Governments mass ivel y subsidise agriculture, which we now know co be widely damaging to the landscape. Total globa l agricultural subsidies have been estimated at ten times the foreign aid budget The pandemonium of interactio ns in ecosystems produces great variability at a range of scales and novel system-level properties emerge. The variability, both internally genera ted and exte rna lly imposed, is criti cal for function, sustainability and ecosystem services This is not an equilibrium world. There is an inherent incongruity in using ma rket economics for natural resource management. How do we set property rights and markets for things that need to fluctuate strongly in space and tim e? In the case of water, the requirements of artificial constancy, secu rity of supply, capitalist production patterns and rights markets for land and water have totally altered the flow patterns of our major rivers - whose natural scales of variability are inconvenient fo r our western-style economy. It is absolutely critical that the country gets its national wate r policy right - and quickly. Lengthy negotiations and delays like those that have been go ing on between jurisdictions over the implementation of the Prime Minister's National Action Plan fo r Salinity and Water Quality are unconscionable. Government institutions are usually yesterday's solution to lase year's problem. For example, our States were set up as important local jurisdictions in the days of sailing ships - now we have different problems and the institutions can't cope. In an era of subsidiarity, how is regional sustainability co be achieved wh ilst balancing the needs of local societies and communi ties with the needs of property ownerships, settlement patterns, market economics, landscape fragmentation and catchment hydrology? R egiona l communities must be truly empowered but it is imperative chat central government does not abr_ogate its

ENVIRO

monitoring, strategic planning, educatio n and auditing roles. Complex and vari able systems frequently show hysteresis effects - points o f " no-retu rn" from w he nce recovery is di ffic ul t o r imp ossibl e . Landscapes, lakes, rivers, estuaries and oceans all show these effects. H ysteresis points often arise fro m the structure of ne tworks and the complexity of interactio ns. In creasing interconnectivity in networks leads to abrupt phase j umps and surprising transitio ns - hysteresis effects ab o und. Simple sys te ms w it h lo w co nnectedness are predictable in their responses, whereas massively connected sys t e m s s h o w l o n g -t e rm c h a o t ic behaviour. NaturaJ ecosystems, landscapes, ri vers and estuaries are ne ither totally predictable nor chaotic . [f they were too predictable or too chaotic then evolutio n would never occur. M o re resea rch o n the dynamics of co mplex systems and a greater understanding o f th e pro perties o f co mplex networks o f components is required .. Sustain ability science is the name given to a new b ra nd of science - transdisciplinary science do ne in the context of the n eeds of society for sustainability. In an era of complexity and surprise it will be necessaty to couple it with another new

2002

paradigm - that of adaptive managem ent. That implies a lea rning society and learning institutions. If w e are to be Y 3K compli an t, " Tri p le bot t om li ne" acco unting w ill require mu ch m ore sophistication than we have hitherto thought necessary. It requires a paradigm shift to foc us m ore o n the longer term rather than on short-term returns and to think beyond neo-classicaJ econ omics co more sophisticated schemes. W e must shift th e paradigm to get a more inclusive " magic circle" o f science, governance, policy develop ment, the community and the m edia. T his is happening but it is no t evenl y spread across all disciplin es It is imperative that we ca ll the bluff of the " busin ess as usual" m erchants and those in denial. The drivers and incentives must be set so as to speed up the transition. E ffic ient and sustainable prod uctio n of energy and the effi cie nt use and reuse of wa ter and nutri ents, waste minimisatio n and recycling are all key areas fo r development. W e must encourage both publ ic and pri vate enterprise to enter th e market for natural resource management. In m any cases the technology already exists, we must make it attracti ve and profitable to use it.

T he systems view I espouse is essentiaJly a plea for a new view of environmen tal ethics. W e cannot place humanity over and above the environm ent; we are part of it and ethics demands a sense of the other and an accep tance of shared responsibility. R ecent w ritings in environm ental ethics echo my arguments here - we m ust value both the intrinsic biodiversity o f this plant and the processes that lin k us all together. Without water, foo d , s helter and compassion we are aJl lost. A commitment to tackling chose challenges in a more inclusive, ethical and holistic manner is certainly a big, hairy goal for humanity. W e nee d n ew science a n d new techn ologies, and CS IRO is aggressively investing in new sc ie nce areas like genomics, proteomics, complex systems and na no-technology but we aJso need to preserve and restore the environment of this planet. T his is prec isely why CS IRO has fou n ded a numbe r of Fl agsh ip P rog ra m s in energy, h ea lt h , the envi ro n ment, new industries and food . T he best-known " big, hairy, audacious goal" of the past was N ASA's goal to put a man o n the moon in a decade - how about we try another? Let us try to keep man on a sustai nable Earth ... it may take a decade or two to accomplish chat.

maces The force In flow.

Pictured, clockwise from top left:

A party of international trade visitors at Enviro 2002. One of the 244 exhibitors' stands. Dr David Garman (left), President 3rd IWA World Water Congress; Susan Riley, Deputy Lord Mayor of Melbourne; and John Parker, Chairman, Enviro 2002 Organising Committee. Ian Cole, WMAA President, and his wife, Dana. The were more than one thousand technical presentations over the four days of Enviro 2002. Prof Don Bursill (left) and Peter Harford watch Nancy MIiiis cut her birthday cake. Glenn Shorrock and Rene Geyer entertain Enviro 2002 attendees.

ENVIRO

2 0 0 2

IWA WORLD WATER CONGRESS AT ENVIRO 2002 Impressions of a roving reporter: Bob Swinton First, it was big. Far bigger than an AW A Convention, and this had the downside that you could never fi nd anybody you wanted to contact. The old method of sitting everyone down to lunch, even in two sittings, had advantages in that respect. For this big event we had a buffet lunch in the Exhibition building, and the two-hou r lu nch interval was designed to give everyone a chance to roam around the trade exhibition or the poster hall, so you met a lot of new people but rarely the person you wanted. Second, it was good. The impact of so many delegates from overseas gave us a wider outlook on the water business. H owever, it was impossible to attend as many sessions as one would like, however carefully one studied t he program and the executive summaries. I concentrated on a few of the Workshop sessions, since they are not covered in the CD ROM of the papers. They were, in fact, organised after the 32

WATER MAY 2002

main program had been planned, and they gave an international insight into the vatious themes which permeate the water industry.

Water Treatment Technology T he first featu red a presentation o n MIEX. The features of MIEX were described by Hung Nguyen ofOtica, and are familiar to readers of Water. Phil Singer of the D rinking Water Research Centre of the U niversity of N orth Carolina reported on the bench-scale tests performed on nine surface water samples from all over USA. They compared various doses ofM IEX followed by alum, w ith conventional alum treatment. As in all Australian tests, M IEX showed dramatic improvement. An interesting sidelight was that the MIEX ion exchange process also reduced the bromide content of some waters, except w hen high alkalinity competed. Ke i th Cadee, of t h e Water C orpo rati on of Western Australia, updated us on the progress of the 11 2

M L/d plant at Wanneroo, which was described in ou r M arch issue. Some practical points emerged during questi o n s from the inte rnational audience . C urrently, at W anneroo, the small volume of highly coloured waste brine is diluted in a 50 kL/ d sewage outfall, but work is proceeding on potential beneficial uses. For example, adding the NOM to some shallow groundwater lakes would reduce algal growth by shielding from sunlight. For inland disposal, deep well injection is feasible. T he polymers used have been approved, even for medical applications, and there is no release of monomer into the product water. Fine resin loss is about 4 ml/kL, and is sensitive to flow rate. This is acceptable, but co uld be improved. T his leakage of resin fines, even though harmless, is captured by the subsequent alum flocc ulation, which is necessary to remove the low molecular weight NOM and mineral turbidity. The process with its multiple cycle is optimised to remove just as much

ENVIRO

2002

Dr Graham Harris, CSIR0, (left) speaking at Enviro 2002 to Barry Norman, President of the AWA.

N O M as is necessary. It has a much lower foo tprin t t han a conve ntio nal ion exchange column and can deal with waters with high turbidity.

Innovative water resources In another workshop Professor Takash.i Asano (Stockholm W ater P rize winner, 2000) focussed on California's needs. The populated cities of C ali fornia impo rt the major portion of their water fro m the north via the aqueducts, whic h run, in a E u ropea n analogy, fro m Germany to Spain (for Australia, that's equivalent to tw ice th e l ength of th e P erth t o Kalgoorlie pipeline or from Newcastle to Melbourne). As population expands from 26 M to 60 Mi n 20 years, the water shortage will rise to 2.5 M acre feet in a normal year, or 11 M acre feet in a drought year. (What's an acre foo t?, you may ask. Answer, 1.23 gigalitres). Even n ow grou nd water resou r ces are overdrawn, so harnessing reuse is vital. . H e listed the seven categories of re-use, the technologies appropriate to eac h, the safety aspect and traced the history of reuse, starti ng with agricultu ral use, then landscape, (quoting Wagga Wagga as an ea rl y exam ple) and steadily continuing into non-p otable do mestic (ie dual reticulation, citing Tokyo office buildings) and now direct potable. H owever, even th ough we can be confident that mem brane technology can eliminate risks from pathogens, the spectre of nanogram/L concentrations of pesticides, horm ones, even perfum es, has now

been raised by m ore sensitive analyses. The risk is no different fro m indirect potable reuse drawn fro m a pollu ted river, but pu blic perception of "the dreaded sewage molecule" wilJ be the m ost important facto r. In his op inion, aquifer storage and recovery wi ll be the way of the future if there is no convenient natural river to act as 'the magic mile'. Britta Forrsb erg, o f St oc k holm, ou tli ned some of the ideas being triall ed

in her city for sustainability. Heat pumps recover heat fro m sewage and direct it to dis t rict h eating systems; the H endrikdaaJ WWTP is underground, and is decorated in bright colours, which makes it an attractive place to visit; groundwater is rising, and treatment for beneficial use is planned; in the outer suburbs old holiday houses are being restored as homes, so trials of individ ual sewage treatment systems are underway; phosphorus is being recovered in BNR sludges and there is even a popu lar trial of separate collection of urine with storage for springtime fertiliser use in parks and agricu ltu re . First flus h stormwater from highways is heavily polJ uted and pu rification trials using membranes have not yet been successful due to fo uli ng by the hydroca rbons. (The phosphorus question was underlined by Odegaard in another workshop on wastewater treatm ent. At the present rate of use as a fe rtiliser, there is only 50 years of resource left in the world. There wilJ be an [W A confere nce in H olland on this topic).

Groundwater A workshop on grou ndwater re mediation and managem en t stressed that this was one of the m ost signi ficant problems in IW A. Of the total amount of water, world-wide, usable freshwate r in surface water is a mere 0.02% whereas groundwater is estimated to be 0.63%. T he poll ution of this valuable resource by industrial activity has been enormous in both Europe and USA. H e cited MTBE

John Parker (left) and Premier Steve Bracks chat to Prof Norihito Tambo, President of the IWA.

WATER MAY 2002

ENVIRO

as only one example , with the maximum leakages from p etrol stati ons (he questioned why high technology cannot yet m ake a leakproof underground tank) . H e also drew attention to the leakage of new chemicals from concrete constructions, mainly sulfonated naphthalenes. New underground tunnels can leak up to 230 mg/L into adjacent gro undwater. However, arsenic is still the most severe problem. The emerging contaminants are the pharmaceuticals and 'personal care' products. The leakage o f veterinary chemicals into groundwater via the manure is also an issue, all being exposed by developments in analysis, such as tandem mass spectograph. A speaker from San D iego described the contamination of groundwater by VOCs and perchlorates. Th eir treatment is to airstrip, then GAC, IX and UV. The result is potable quality, with TCE reduced from 50 to ND, CC1 3 from 3m.g/l to ND, perchlorate from 70 to 4 and NDMA 0.4. Cost is US $0.36/kL. But "administrative issues" prevent its use, i. e the C alifornian H ealth Services policies which require extremely strict limits and n.ine steps of review with a final public hearing. The Orange Cou nty Water Factory 21, which commenced operation in 1976, was discussed by Greg Lesley. After a few years it upgraded its treatment train to include RO , and has injected 30 kL/ d into about a dozen wells, ostensibly as a barrier against seawater intrusion into a groundwater source. Its regulations were based o n pathogen content and TOC, plus a minimum travel time of 12 m onths fo r 1000 yards. C urrently about 80% o f the inj ected water is now drawn from supply wells fo r potable use and so there is now a sea-change in regulations. Whilst pharmaceuticals are well removed by RO , NDMA is only 50% removed. For 20 years the injected water contained 170 ppt. Treatm ent by UV and peroxide reduces the level to 10 ppt, and this is now regarded as the standard m ethod fo r reuse. (One can compare this with Santa Anna where the groundwater is 100% treated effluent from upstream ). An epidemiological study of O range County was suggested but suspended because not only did the distribution syst em frequen tl y cha nge, but the population was so transient that a reliable long-term cohort could not be recruited.

Managing water security This workshop reviewed the measures being adopted in variou s countries to ensure that drinking water facilities were safe from co ntamination, either by

WATER MAY 2002

2 0 0 2

accident or deliberate attack. Obviously, m ost co untries institu ted enhanced measures after September 11th 2001 (11/9). • Villessot, Lyonnaise des Eaux, France. His company operates some 2000 contrac ts to local authorities. Previous to 11 /9 HACCP was applied with a centralised analytical database to monitor trends. Post 11 /9 they applied V IG IPIRATE w hich was developed during the Gulf War, to cope with possible chemical contamination, but they now apply B IOTOX, foc ussing on botulin. C hlorine disinfection is rigorously monitored. C risis teams at the three levels o f Government, local authority and operator have been form.ed, each one tailored to their unique situation . The critical point is rapid communication, with adequate information to custom ers as to what will be available in case of restrictions. • Spillet, Thames Water, UK. Plans for worst case scenari os have been developed since 1995, and these are audited every year. He described the Mutual Aid Scheme shared between all water companies in UK, with lists o f resources w hich can be loaned at short notice. These cam e to fruition in the floods of 2001, w here high capacity pumps and tankers to supply clean water were deployed to low- lying areas around the nation. Incident response methodology is integrated into daily practices. The Y2K exercise was useful in analysing complete system s. Post 11/9, they added risk-assessment, not only fo r UK but also their hundreds of overseas employees,

with controls to prevent over-zealous response. • Drusiani, Director of Aqua, Italy: Convention ally they considered three stages: Threats without action: Simulated attack, with drums poised close to reservoirs: R eal attack, w ith drums emp tied into reservoirs .. N ow they concentrate o n "explicit boundary violations" . Since 1995 these have been growing steadily in frequency. M ost are hoaxes, but of the rest, half are politically motivated, half are criminal or insane. Since 11/9 remotely controlled video cam eras have been widely deployed, along with increased monitoring o f water quality. M anuals have been developed for decontamination routin es and public inforrn.at i on. Biological attack may be countered by disinfection, but there is a possibility that the chlorination stations could also be attacked, so monitoring fo r a sudden drop in chlorine residual is essential. • Dion, Executive Director of the Association of Metropolitan Water Authorities, USA: ou tlin ed th e incredibly complex matrix of corn.mittees set up under th e three systems of American administratio n to deal with emergencies. These apply across the whole spectrum of essen tial services, ranging fro m banks, IT, to power and water. In 1998 the U SEPA set up a Water Protection T ask Force, and in January 2001, the AWW A formed an Advisory Group, recruited from public and private u tilities. A Manual will be distribu ted in 2002. The R esea rch Fo undation has a projec t o n vulnerabi li ty assessme nt , drawing from a $SOM fund. A lot of work

ENVIRO

had been done, which was heightened after 11/9, and it is anticipated that within a year a state of normalcy of readiness will apply throughout the nation. â&#x20AC;˘ Kubota , City of Yokohama , said that Japan is accustomed to disaster, since Nature is ve ry dangerous in their country. T errorist disaster is also wellknown, for example the release of Sarin gas in the Tokyo subway in 1995. For his city's water supply they have instituted two areas of development. Disaster software rapidly accesses information, contact numbers and even a register of retired employees w ho can be called on for emergency. Hardware developments include increasing fence heights to nearly 3 metres, with TV cameras, and covering of all basins. Automatic water quality monitoring is sampled from both the intake and after the filtration units. Biological monitoring is performed using fish avoidance systems. Cylindrical underground tanks (1 ML capacity) are installed for emergency supply, with convenient stores of pipes and valves for rebuilding reticulation. Questions foc ussed on the use of G IS and hydraulic mo delling to study rate of dissemination of a contamination , and document vulnerability. Then a questioner came to the microphone, ann ounced his name as M oshe Avnon, from Israel, and bluntly declared that what he had heard so far did not tackle the real problem . He was the M anaging Director of the Infrastructure D epartment of the Unio n of Local Authorities. In Israel, fo r water supply only, they have 15 to 20 alarms each year, of w hich about 20% are real. (H e was rapidly brought to the lectern, and joined the international panel). He said that in real life, you can divide the situation into two parts. a) C risis management, which is easily dealt with by the W ater Authority by cu tting off th e supply rapidly, ttying to bypass if at all possible, but in reality th e whole of the network is suspect . The Water Authority then proceeds to decontaminate and flush . b) Disaster management, which is far more serious, which is a fun ctio n of the Police or the Army. T ypically, within half an hour of the taps running dry, there is panic. It is dangerous to consider running tankers down the street w ith a tap at th e back. They will be mobb ed. In some cities Israel has installed static tanks every 500 metres or so, from which the population

2002

can draw water, and these are topped up by the mobile tankers. Supermarkets maintain large stacks of water in plastic bags which are sold to customers for a nominal fee. All this is run by the disaster command, w hich is trained to deal with all types of disaster, and to w hi ch the Water Authority reports. Hospitals are trai ned to cope with sudden influx of diarrhoea. All this must be exercised once a year, like fire drill, to cope with changes in personnel. Answering a question on how they detect contamination he replied that they are trying a monitor using glow-worms, with the alarm focussing on extinguishment of their chemi-luminescence. H e felt that biological attack was less likely than simpler chemical contamination, and authorities ensured that standpipes, etc, were tamper-proof, since a determined attacker could pump in a contaminant against the mains pressu re. General discussion was then far more lively. France has a manual on the distri-

bution of bottled water, under local authority control. Italy, (used, like Japan, to earthquakes) maintains stocks of water bags. The ability of general laboratories to monitor ra pidl y eno u gh was questioned. The UK maintains two specialist laboratories, but a result in less than 24 hours was unlike ly. Fish monitors, particularly those using multiple numbers and monitoring of avoidance rather than metabolism, seemed to be the answer. Kerry Jones ofBrisbane Water had the last word. The recent CHOGM function in Brisbane demanded a thorough secu rity plan, and the water component is to be published by the AW A. This covers vandalism, as well as terrorism, to which Michael R o use, of the Drinking Water Inspectorate, UK, in closing the discussion, commented that he rather liked vandals, particularly when they access the service reservoirs during the summer holidays. They show up the defects in the security system. (A fascinating workshop on Water Law and Pricing will be reported in afu ture issue).

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At the IW A Conference, Bob Swinton and Brian McRae roved around the overseas delegates and posed four pertinent questions to a number of them. Th ey were: 1. What do you estimate the effects ef climate change to be on u;ater resources in your region? 2. With modem membrane technology, do you think that direct potable reuse will befeas ible? 3. Since only 1% of reticulated water is actually drunk, why should we not purify reticulated water to a cheaper standard, but rely on either a point of use Jilter or bottled water for drinking? 4. What do you see as the challenges and opportunities for water resources in your region? Most of the replies were 'off the cuff' so cannot represent official policy, but we publish them because som e of them could broaden our rather parochial attitudes.

Effect of Climate Change Mark Beuhler, California (Vice President Water Quality Strategies, Metropolitan Water District ef Southern California) who chaired the sessions on climate change. I like facts and figures and we don't have them. But it do es seem that weather patterns will be uncertain, so we do need a focus, and I favo ur scenario planning, on how to manage our systems for uncertainty. Systems dependent on surface suppli es will be niost vulnerable, alternatives such 36

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2002

as conservation and reclamation need to be pursued. Takashi Asano, California: (Professor Emeritus, University of California, Davis) Not sure whether to believe it. But probably extreme events will occur more often. Mike Cavanagh, California: Will have dramatic effect on our already strained water resource. D esalination of seawater will be our back-up.

Michael R ouse, UK (Drinking Water Inspecto rate): More winter rain, less summer rain, so more storage will have to be installed, particularly in the eastern part of England. However, the major threat is seawater flooding in the Thames estuary. Daniel Villessot, France (Lyonnaise des Eaux): The major part of France is well watered. However, there may be a threat to th e M editerran ean coast, which derives its water from the Canal du Midi and Canal du Provence .. None th e less, we are considering export of water from the French Alps along the coast into Barcelona. Drusiani, Italy (Director of AQUA): The impact on the South w ill be significant. Already we have suffered lower rainfalls and the conflict between agriculture and town supply is intensifying. Some towns only have water for a few hours a day.

Agricultural use is not metered, but plans are to install metering and increase the efficiency of water use, eg by different crops.

De Carvalho, Braz il (National Quality Committee, A ssociation of Sanitary and Environmental Engineering): Water is plentiful in Brazil, except in the far north east. However, Chile will be hard hit. Rod H olmes, Canada (Past President of ArnWWA, now with Earth T ech in Toronto): Whether climate change is more than 'normal' variation is still disputed. However, we have to plan for each region which might be affected. In S Kim, Korea (Professor at Kwangju IST. Director of Water R euse Technology): It seem s that climate change is already occurring. Our monsoon season is already a month in advance. Plenty of rain then .ie. 1200 mm a year for 40 M population., but storage for 75% of year inadequate. Halvard Odegaard, Norway (NTNU): We are already seeing an increase in NOM (colour) in o ur surface waters. Reg Bailey, South Africa (Water Research, Metro Water, Durban): There are too many more significant issues for us to bother about climate change. W e anticipate 25% reduction in our population due to AIDS, so we have plenty of water.

Feasibility of direct potable re-use iVIark Be11hler: An unwise move, and I cannot see it happening. Technically it is possible but public will not accept the concept. A proposal for ASR in Southern California resulted in media fury. ("toilet to the tap") . We have not run out of non-potable uses for reclaimed water. Takashi Asa110: Technically feasible, despite the nanogram/L presence of chemicals, but we should concentrate on non-potable reuse to its limits. Indirect, unplanned, re-use is well established and there is no legal liability. 1\/fike Cava11agh: Unlikely, but groundwater recharge of tertiary treated wastewater is already well established (cf Water Factory 21). 1vlichael Rouse: Certainly feasible, and indirect potable reuse is the norm for UK and Europe and most of USA, However, public acceptance will be difficult. For example, a proposal to pump a highly treated wastewater into a reservoir created a furore. It now goes into a river, and the water quality of the reservoir is somewhat lower than it could have been. Daniel Villessot: Definitely no. Renato Drusia11i: Currently forbidden because oflegal problems, but a new law is being studied. De Carualho: No need because water is plentiful in Brazil Rod I-Io/mes: Canada has lots of water, even though the Great Lakes are polluted. As we approach retrofitting with very significant costs, we should consider alternatives. However, it will be more than science and economics, water is an emotional issue 111 S. Kim: Not likely in our country. Haluard Odegaard: No, because there is no need in Norway.

Lower standards for reticulated water with either Point of Use filters or bottled water for drinking 1vlark Be11hlcr: Consumers are already pursuing both alternatives. POU treatment is cheaper than purchase of bottled water, and seems a more likely solution. The economics of POU versus centralised treatment and reticulation are getting closer. If the latter has to use membrane technology, then the gap is even smaller. In general consumers prefer to be in control and POU gives them that. If you

take into consideration possible terrorist attacks, then a good POU system would provide a fairly fool-proof barrier. If you include the costs associated with the alternatives that our consumers are currently pursuing then the 'true cost' of water is higher than we typically assume. The real key is to pursue solutions in a way that allows consumer preferences to drive the end results. Takashi Asa110: The American public is demanding ever higher standards for the reticulated supply. However, in Spain, some European and South American countries, nobody trusts the tap water, so they all drink bottled water. POU or district treatment plants would help, but it is all a question of price, not technology. J\Iike Ca11a11agh: It will be an economic decision. versus dual reticulation 1vlidwel Ro11se, D T.if/1, UK: The major cost of tap water is its reticulation, so the extra costs of treatment to high standards can be born. The major difficulty is maintaining that standard in old systems and POU filters are often used. Reverse Osmosis does not provide a pleasant drinking water .. .it is flat and tasteless. Daniel Villessot: Most French people drink bottled water because they do not like the taste of chlorinated water. Reuato Dmsia11i: There are problems with the safety of a number of commercial bottled waters. A new EU Directive may attack this. De Can,all10: The standards in our cities are adequate. Rod Holmes: As an industry we are focussed on education, but marketing is relatively an anathema. The 'competitors' for drinking water are Coca Cola, Pepsi, and the other beverage industries, where marketing costs are by far the biggest expenditure. Should we be more proactive? I think so. In Canada we don't talk about 'conservation', we use 'water efficiency'. This is a modest example, but we have a long way to go, particularly in the area of water reuse, which has a lot of unrealised potential. The breakthrough for alternatives may be infrastructure replacement costs. The alternative may well be decentralised 'POU' treatment, maintained, I hope, by the utilities. You could have competition for the servicing of customer devices. If you want 'blue sky' thinking, how about an undersink device which allows the consumer to 'dial in' (and pay for), the level of water quality they want.

In S. Kim: Much 'tap water' comes from wells which have been polluted. In that case a micro-filter (RO?) system would be adopted by high-income households.

Challenges and Opportunities 1vlark Bc11hler: Demand reduction is pivotal; pursuing strategies such as conservation, reclamation and brackish water recovery. I don't think we have scratched the surface of what is technologically possible. There are developments, eg nano technology, occurring outside the water industry with unknown potential, and we should improve our dialogue with other sectors. Takashi Asano: The crisis is in the developing countries. 66% are under stress already, and it will get worse. 1\tlike Cavanagh: The challenge is to increase the supply to Southern California without imposing environmental damage. We will have to face up to extracting less from the Colorado River. 1Vfidiael Rouse: To be able to improve the aesthetic quality of tap water, which is a big issue in UK. Discussions are taking place with plastics manufacturers to reduce the effect of chlorinated water on plastic bottles and jugs. Keeping a glass jug of tap water in the frig removes the chlorine taste, but people use plastic jugs instead. Da11iel Villessot: One challenge is the impact of agricultural chemicals on our water resources. Atrazine has been banned for ten years but is still present. The other is to minimise taste and odour. A third is to met the new EU Directives for pathogens which requires a turbidity of less than 0.5 NTU. Re11ato Dmsia11i: To reduce water wastage and obviate the need for new dams. De Car/la/ho: To increase wastewater treatment. Currently only 12% is treated, and the rest goes out to rivers and ocean. With World Bank help, the government has just commenced a program aimed at 60% treated by 2008. Rod Holmes: The single biggest issue is the mismatch between political boundaries and natural watersheds. The former have no logic from an engineering standpoint. A potential solution would be some fonn of regional authmity 0ike your Murray-Darling) but the shortness of political timeframes present an obstacle. 111 S. Kim: To tackle the lack of storage for the d1y season, with the resistance of the population to sequestering good land for damsites. WATER MAY 2002

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PROTECTING ENVIRONMENTAL RIVER FLOWS WHILE CATERING FOR WATER SUPPLY DEMAND M Thompson Abstract

includes; a l0GL off-river storage dam, increased abstraction from the The H astings District Water H astings River, duplication of aspects Supply Augmentat io n Sch eme of the existing system and an ongoing [HDWS] includes a l0GL off-creek demand management program. The storage dam and a 120ML/ day river total cost of the proposed water pumping station, which are currently sc heme is app roximately supply under construction and due for $78M. co mpletion in D ecember 2002. The Prior to commissioning the EIS, Cowarra off-creek storage dam is Council initiated direct consultation required to meet predicted long-term with the local community and other urban growth demands for water stakeholders, including the key state supply and to ensu re the long-term government resource management protection of environmental flows in agencies. This consultation process the H astings River. has co ntinued throughout th e Since 1985 the H astings Council planning, impl eme ntati o n and has progressively developed a major construction phases of this project. strategy fo r the sustainable augmenThe adopted water supply scheme tation of the water supply scheme includes an innovative op eration and including a very successful ongoing environmental monitoring strategy Figure 1. Map of Hastings water supply scheme consultation process with both the for river abstraction activities, which local commun ity, aboriginal land is being implemented to fill and Co uncil and key government agencies. hinterland o f Port M acquarie 400 operate the off- creek dam storages and a T he premise was: kilometres to the north of Sydney has demand management program long-term been identified as one of the top five "That the impact upon aquatic flora to reduce water usage. regional growth centres in Australia. T he and fa una in the H astings R iver should region continues to sustain an annual be minimised and appropriate safeguards Investigations growth rate of 3% w ith a current developed by maintaining minimum Water Supply Scheme population of 68,000 persons, which is river flows to ensure that the river habitat In 198 5 the Hastings Council expected to more than double by the year is not adversely affected " . commenced investigations fo r a long-term 2040. Th e s ub se qu en t HDW S water supply strategy, which would The H astings Council is responsible Environmental Impact Statement, 1995 supplement the existing water supply for the manage ment of the water was one of the first in Aust~alia to scheme. The objectives of the initial supply syste m wi thin the Hastings recognise the importance of environinvestigations were to determine the most R ive r cat chment area. Since 1985 mental river flows in the assessment of the appropriate source and the works required Coun cil has progressively developed a aquatic ecological effects of water supply to ensure a safe, long- term water supply strategy fo r the augmentation of the schemes. and to establish an effective and flexible Hastings District Water Supply Scheme The adopted water supply scheme plan to guide Council in the future develin cons ulta tion with t h e local includes an innovative operation and opment of the water supply scheme. community. (Figure 1). environmental monitoring strategy fo r A number of detailed studies and invesT he overall objective of the augmenriver abstraction activities, which is being tigations were undertaken including: implemented to fill and operate the offtation scheme is to provide a drought water supply demands, ongoing stakecreek dam storages and a long-term secure and sustainable water supply for the ho l der co ns ult at ion, po pulation demand management program to reduce H astings District. It is also an objective projections, river environmental flows, water usage. to provide a scheme, which w ill be water quality, demand management, responsive to the ongoing environKey words: Environmental River Flows, river flow utilisation, scheme sizing, mental, social and economical concerns Community Consultation, Water Supply dam site feasibility and a review of of the community (ie. The Triple Bottom Planning environmental fac tors. Line). Foll owi ng the co mpletion of a Introduction Following the adoption by Council in Concept R eport and a Review of The H astings region located on the 1996 of an Environmental Impact Environmental Factors (REF) in 1991, North Coast of New South Wales, in the Statement (EIS), the adopted strategy now Council implemented an extensive public WATER MAY 2002

BUSINESS

consultation process to provide the local community furthe r opportunities to be involved in the decision making process. The ongoing consultation proc ess Council maintained during the investigation pe riod resulted in strong community support for the selected preferred augmentation scheme. This included support from both urban and rural communities. The preferred scheme was based on increased abstraction from the H astings R iver and transfer via trunk mains to a new off-creek storage dam. This would supplement the existing 2.SGL off-creek storage dam in Port Macquarie at times when river abstraction is not possible. Dam Site Selection & EIS

A total · of 24 potential off-creek storage dam sites had been identified in the investigation studies. Further detailed assessment and site investigations reduced this number to two sites; both ideally located in a central location between the likely growth centres. In 1992 Council adopted "Site E" in the Cowarra State Forest as the preferred site of the proposed off-creek storage dam. Council also determined that the proposed off-creek storage dam and increased abstraction from the Hastings River were deemed to be an "Activity" under Part V of the NSW Environmental Planning & Assessment Act 1979 and req u ired the preparation of an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS). Detailed on-site investigations and negotiations to purchase the dam site commenced to ensure that it would be practical to proceed with the project and to assist with the preparation of the Environmental Impact Statement. Concept Report Review

In addition, given the length of the investigation period (1985 to 1992), it was decided to undertake a detailed review of information and design assumptions used in the original concept strategy. This review included improved data on population projections, water supply demands , river environmental flows and other emerging issues. The refined objectives for the water supply strategy included: • Provision of water to meet anticipated increased demands in the foreseeable future. • Maintain water supply during periods of serve drought. • Be flexible to accommodate changes in the tinting and location of development. 40

WATER MAY 2 002

Figure 2 . Cowarra dam construction

• Provide water quality of acceptable standard at all times. • Be environmentally, socially and economicall y acceptab l e to the community, and • I mplemen t a t ion of demand measurement measures as a long-term strategy. Environmental River Flows

During this review of the o riginal concept strategy a number of matters affecting the proposed strategy were highlighted, the most significant being the minimum environmental river flows, which needed to be preserved fo r the downstream aquatic environment and other river users. The concept of environmental flows had been considered in the original strategy with a minimum river flow of 60 ML/ day being set by the State Department ofWater Resources (DWR). T his minimum river flow figure was subsequently increased to 100 ML/day following concerns raised by Council and other stakeholders in relation to the ann ual migration of Australian Bass and other fish species in the Hastings River. However, during 1993 the then DWR introduced a draft policy for the maintenance of environmental river flows based upon the principle of maintaining the 80th percentile river flow. "Percentile flows" are statistically generated streamflow values, which are exceeded on specified percentage of the time. This decision significantly increased the minimum required environmental river flows particularly during the spring months, which was important in

protecting fish migration in this section of the river. This had a major impact on the proposed water supply scheme, firstly doubling the required size of the new offcreek storage dam, from 5 to l0GL and adding $1 SM to the cost of the scheme. T he introduction of these additional environmental flows also increased the size of various scheme components and changed the system configuration. It was clear that the pumping capacity to extract water from the H astings R iver would need to be increased and that there was going to be less flexibility on the amount and timing of water extraction from what is already a river under some stress. Council initiated further investigations to determine whether meeting this ground rule would be sufficient to ensure the smvival of nligratory fish using this section of the river. D uring the course of these investigations it became apparent that fis h migration for key indicator species, such as the Australian Bass, was critical during the spring months when the river would typically also be low. However, river levels were not generally critical during higher flow autumn months. On this basis the study team determined that the adoption of uniform pumping criteria would not guarantee the survival of several fish species based on field research of their habitat and passage requirements. To overcome this problem, a working party of aquatic specialists and hydrologists devised a pumping regime which minimised the impacts on fish passage during critical months w ithout comprorn.ising the water supply strategy. T he

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ado pted rev ised pump ing regime provided better protection to the river environment during the spring low flows and better petformance of the water supply system through increased access to autumn h igh flows. R evised water sharing arrangements during periods of drought were subsequently negotiated with the DWR. T he DWR would reduce environmental flow conditions to the 9 5th percentile during periods of prolonged low flow when the off-creek storage is depleted to nominated levels correspondin g to th e introduction of water restrictions. Consequ en tly, these adopted environ m ental flow conditions were used to assess th e minimum sto rage requirem ents for the Cowarra off-creek storage dam. The achievement of such an approach was considered an innovative and sign ificant adva nce on the h istoric reliance of adopting uniform monthl y flo w criteria in controlling river water abstraction for a water supply system. T he stud ies also identified informati on gaps in the ecology of the

Hastings River system and set in place biological monito ring programs to provide information on changes in the aqua tic environment over time. The resulting environmental management plan wiU advise Council on how best to respond and adapt to change in the environment over time on the basis of ongoing monitoring. Based upon the results of the revised river pumping regime and the identified need to monitor low river flows, a decision was made in 1993 to investigate a system to accurately monitor both river flows and water quality on a continuous basis. A p rogram to develop further knowledge of the ecology of the Hastings River was also implemented as a precursor to th e pr eparati on of construction and operational environmenta l management plans for ri ver abstraction acti vities.

Environmental Approval Process Environmental Impact Statement

The Water Supply Concept Report was finalised and adopted by Council in 1994 and preparation o f the

Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) commenced. The scope o f the EIS included assessment of: â&#x20AC;˘ The l0GL dam construction and operation. â&#x20AC;˘ The H eadworks associated with the provision of increased water uptake capacity to supply the proposed dam, including a ne w intake works and 120ML/ day pump station on tl1e Hastings River at Koree Isla nd. â&#x20AC;˘ Gravity main between Koree Island and the dam site. The completed E IS document and information brochures were distributed to stake holders and placed on public exhibition for a ten-week period from August to October in 1995 . A number of public workshops, interest group prese ntations and open days were conducted p rior to and during this exhibition period to promote comment and submissions on the EIS. A total of 23 submissions we re received durin g the exhibition period . The various workshops, presentations and open days were welJ attended by lo ca l

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residents, in terest groups, media and government agencies. In May 1996 Council was finally able to determine the EIS and approve the "Activity" allowing the Cowarra Dam project and associated works to proceed in accordance wi th th e ado p ted "Conditions of Approval". Monitoring of Environmental Performance

The Hastings R iver will continue to be the primary source of water supply for this district. The proposed pumping regime has been designed to maintain critical downstream flows during periods of low flo w (drought) and for th e migration of sign ificant fis h species, particularly the Australian Bass. The detailed river flow studies and aquatic biota investigations undertaken as part of this EIS have been refined and updated on a regular basis to support the development of a long term and adaptive environmental management plan. The "Water Licenc e" granted for the construction of th e Cowarra D arn and increased water abstraction from the

Figure 3. Aerial view of the dam

Hastings River includes extensive requirements for ongoing monitoring of the aquatic environment. One of the primary functions of this monitoring is to verify that the adopted minimum environmental flows are effective, and where approptiate,

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WATER MAY 2002

to provide predictive infonnation to refine

them in the longer term. In 1994, Council in close co-operation with Mace Instru ments, Greenspan Technology, Manly H ydrauli cs Laboratory and NSW Department of Public Works & Services (DPWS) successfully develop ed and installed a "real-time" river flow gauging station in the H astings River downstream of the Koree Island pumping stations. This "Doppler" based sensing system is capable of measuring real-time mean stream velocity, together w ith river gauge heights and a detailed stream bed cross-section, provides accurate [+ /2. 5%] low river flow readings. This "realtime" river flo w information is critical to the proposed future operation of the water supply scheme, monitoring of the aquatic habitat and long-term protection of environmental flows. A number of"AquaLab" water quality analyser units have also been installed at the Koree Island site co monitor and record a variety of physical , chemical and nutrient parameters. This water quality data is required firstly to ensure the quality of drinking water pumped from the river, provide base-line data to support environmental n10nitoring programs and identify any significant changes in water quality parameters. The "AquaLab" units include an independent water sampling system, w hich will o n an alarm condition or by command, obtain "event" samples fo r furthe r detailed laboratory analysis. In order to establish an adaptive stream management strategy, a genericform biological monitoring program has been implemented at Koree Island. This

BUSINESS

regular monitoring of the riverine habitat includes: riparian vegetation, platypuses, macro-invertebrates, fish, algae, diatoms, microorganisms and macrophytes.

Dam Construction Land Acquisition

Following Council's decision in 1992 to adopt the Cowarra Dam site, work commenced on the negotiated acquisition of the land required for the dam site. T he total dam catchment area of 112ha included 83ha ofNSW State Forest land. In order to obtain the land required from the NSW State Forest, Council investigated existing freehold properties adjacent to other State Forests in the local area and in consultation with local Forest1y Officers a sho rt list of five preferred properties were identified as possible sites for the exchange of the land required for the Cowarra Dam site. Council su bsequently purchased a 205ha property adjoining the Bellangry State Forest, to exchange with NSW State Forests for the Cowarra Dam site and access roads. H owever, following the rem.oval of the "Foresny Gazettal" on the State Forest land required fo r the Cowarra Dan1 site, the land became vacant Crown Land and therefore subject to "Native Title". In order to extinguish "Native T itle" Council sought the assistance of the Bunyah Local Aboriginal Land Council (LALC). The Bunyah LALC had previously been involved in the identification of aboriginal archaeological artefacts at the Cowarra Dam site, during the prelimina1y investigations for the alternative dam sites. Initi al informal discussions with the "Bunyah" members quickly identified that the provision of meaningful training and employment opportunities were a very high priority for the Land Council. O nce sufficient trust and understanding were established, an agreement was reached between Council, DPWS and the Bunyah LALC. This agreement inclu ded a requ irement fo r all works and contracts associated with the Cowarra Dam project to provide employment and training opportunities for Bunyah LALC members. So in-lieu of any direct monetary compensation, the Bunyah LAL C supported Council's application to the NSW Aboriginal Land Council for the extinguishmenc of "Native Title" on the Cowarra Dam Site. Since reaching this agreement with the B unyah LALC in 1997, their members have been involved in both minor and major contract works associated with the project including the construction access roadway, water supply trunk mains, site

clearing, dam construction, catchment weed management, site erosion control and archaeological monitoring. The Bunyah LALC has also been successful in winning a tender, on a competitive basis, for t h e ongo i ng weed control management of the dam catchment area. This ongoing and successful relationship with the Bunyah LALC has allowed this project to proceed, with due regard to the collec t ion o r site preservation of Aboriginal relics from sites within the catchment and inundation areas, in accordance with consents issued by NSW National Parks & Wildlife Service. Site Clearing

T he environmental assessment and approval process for the Cowarra Dam proj ect, w hich included a REF, EIS and a Fauna Impact Statement, identified three "scheduled" species requiring consideration during construction and future operation of the dam. The Gl ossy-Black Cockatoo was considered of particular importance and as a result any site clearing was restricted to a period between September and

February each year to avoid disruption of its annual roosting season. A program of selective site clearing commenced in October 1997. This included the on-site identifica tion and protection of all significant habitat trees and the im plementation of regular fauna monitoring surveys at the dam site. In order to salvage as much timber from the site as practical, a staged timberha rvesting plan was developed and implemented. The first stages of this plan included the recovery of all merchantable timber and forest products including native o rchids, staghorns, and other subtropical planes within the inundation area by NSW State Forests. This access to the available timber and forest products from the site formed part of the original la n d exc h ange agreement reac h ed between Council and NSW State Forests. At the com pletion of this work by NSW State Forests, a number of mobile sawmill contractors were approached to fu rther remove remaining trees and timber products from the site. This proved to be a very successful process with a large majority of the remaining trees and fallen

WATER MAY 2 002

BUSINESS

off-cut timber being collected and milled by these operators, supplying the local oyster industry with turpentine and tallow-wood products. Timber from the site was also donated to a number of RiverCare and LandCare projects in the local area. These included river revetment and stream bank erosion control works und ertaken by these vo l unteer commu nity gro ups. A numbe r of commercial fi rewood suppliers were also given access to the dam site to collect and recover waste timber suitable for the firewood market. During the timbe r clearing and collection process the trees along major creek lines were maintained to reduce soil erosion and provide a migration path for affected fauna to be able to relocate to the adjacent catchment area and State Forest. It is estimated that more then 80% of the timber from the 70ha inundation area has been recovered during this work and has clearly demonstrated to the local community and State Government agencies Council's commit1nent to a sustainable development process.

Public Tours

Construction of the Cowarra off-creek storage dam commenced in 1999 and since that time Council has conducted weekly public tours of the construction site, in cooperation with the various construction contractors. (Figures 2 and 3). T he 3 hour tour includes a 45-minute slid e presentation by Council staff detailing how the existing water supply scheme works, outlining of the proposed augmentat ion sc heme, highlighting impo rtant environmental issues and adopted solutions, details of the current construction works, household demand management issues, water saving tips and an open question and answer session. A site safety induction is also provided before an escorted site bus tour is undertaken, with visitors being provided with appropriate safety-wear. These tours have proved to be extremely popular with the local communiry and over 3000 people have taken the opportuniry to visit the dam site. Although construction has now been completed onsite, there is still a very strong demand for Council to

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WATER MAY 2002

E A R T H

Conclusion This project has achieved the following outcomes: • Protection of environmental flows in the Hastings River, • Cate ring for fut u re u rban water demands in a sustainable manner, • Ongoing community consultation and lo cal support for the water supply augmenta t ion wo rks an d demand management strategy, • Long-term commitment to demand management and env i ronmenta l monitoring. Gaining the communiry's trust and confidence is crucial in order to achieve succ essfu l outcomes in resource management issues. This project has been successful in combining a broad technical knowledge base including the local community to develop and implement innovative solutions to provide a reliable and sustainable approach to water management issues. The completion of the Cowarra Dam will form part of a major regional water supply scheme aimed at achieving the principles of ecologically sustainable development. This together with an adaptive enviro nmental managem ent system will ens u re continuous improvement and benefits to the local communiry and environment.

Acknowledgements T he author thanks Hastings Council for permission to publish this paper and also acknowledge the assistance provided by NSW Department of Public Works & Services in the investigation, design and construction of the Hastings District Water Supply Scheme Augmentation .

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continue with the site tours. The positive communiry feedback and support from these tours has been very encouraging. This direct interaction with the public has also helped to raise the communiry's understanding and confidence in the way that Council is undertaking its role as a water resource manager.

References Connell Wagner Pry Ltd (1995). Hastings District Water Supply Augmentation - Enviromnental Impact Statement, Report No. 95102, Public Works and Services, NSW Australia.

The Author T

Murray Thompson is the Water Supply Manager for H astings Council, T elephone: +6i 2 658 1 8111, Facsimile: +6 1 2 658 1 8735, email: murrayt@ hastings.nsw .gov .au

WASTEWATER:

TECHNICAL

NOTE

AUTOMATIC AERATION OF A SHALLOW WASTEWATER STORAGE FL Burns Cha n ges to the prod u ction diversion and 310 hectares of Pinus processes in 1991 enabled Australian radiata plantation. It remains the Newsprint Mills Ltd at Albury to largest effiu ent irrigated plantation in manufactu re a w hiter newsprint Australia. suitable for p rese n t day colour This scheme reuses 2,800 M L of printing, and soon after to produce a mill effiuent p er year by irrigating the product containing 40 % recycled plantation using 1,500 km of drip fibre. As a result the Albu ry mill, irrigation tube and 30 km of underpresently operated by N orske Skog ground pipe. T ertiary treatment of the Paper Mills (Australia) Ltd, now effluent at the mill provides the good produces 35% of Australia's domestic quality water required fo r its satisnewsp rint requirements (rep lacing factory operation, w hich was passed $170 M of imports per year), and throu gh fi nal spin-disc fil ters before recycles 160 000 tonnes of wastepaper Pl.t,1P HOUS~ 15Kw CCMPRESSOR reticulation to the drip irrigators. WITH AUTOMATIC per year (whi ch was previously SCALE m CONTROL ALONGSIDE H owever this treated eilluent has to i I I I t f landfilled). PUMP HOUSE 0 100 200 300400 600 be stored when not requ ired for T he environmental approvals and irrigation and a large 2,000 ML licensing associated with these process Figure 1. Plan of winter storage showing Winter Storage has been capacity changes required the development of aeration installation. provided by construction of a 1 km an effective off-river effiuent re-use commissioned. It included an innovative long 13 m high earth embankment across sch eme. In 1996 at the cost of $ 10.4 state-of- the-art automated irri gation a natural depression, forming a shallow million the off-river reuse scheme was sys tem, w inter storage dam, creek storage with a maximum depth of7.5 111. N

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WATER MAY 2002

TECHNICAL

WASTEWATER

NOTE

Figure 2 . Albury winter storage monitoring results Summer 1996/1997 to 1999/2000. Tl!MPl!AA1UR.I! GRADl!NT • TOTAL. IRaH

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Figure 2b. Total Iron, Tota l Manganese and Total Nitrogen.

Figure 2c. Total Organic Carbon, Chlorophyll-a and Colour.

During storage the warm treated eilluent deteriorated in quality due to thermal stratification. Depletion of o::-..-ygen in the bottom layers caused release of phosphorus, iron and manganese from the sediments. This led to blooms of filamentous or colonial micro-organisms which fouled the filters , and also iron/manganese slimes formed in the drip tubes. This threat was removed by instalJation of an auto1natic aeration system in the storage. T his comprised a single 15 kW compressor bubbling air from a 4111 long aerator located on the bed of the storage to create sufficient circulation throughout the storage to eliminate stratification (Figure 1). The compressor is controlled

by temperature probes suspended in the storage to constantly monitor the stratification and operate the aera t or intermittently to maintain continuously destratified conditions. This eliminated the development of o::-..-ygen depleted conditions at the bottom sediments. The resulting improvement in water quality is shown in Figs 2a, 26 and 2c. This $34,000 installation was designed by Frank L Burns using special equipment supplied by Cash Engineering R esearch Pty Ltd. It provides an economical and environmentally frie n dly so lu t ion conforming with the automatic operation concept of the irrigation scheme. Its operation has enabled the company to comply with its government approvals

and continue to provide the Australian community with the environmental and social benefits promised by their production process changes of the early 1990's. In the 2001 Excellence Awards of the Association of Consulting Engineers, Australia, the project was judged 2nd highest in the Environmental Section and the best Sole Practitioner project from the year 2001 for all sections. A full paper is available on the CDROM of the AWA 2001 Convention.

The Author Frank Burns is a consulting engineer who for some years has specialised in reservoir d est ratificati on. Email: fburns@ozemail. com.au

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THE ASEAN COUNTRIES P R Nadebaum, T C Chong, A G Cikalov Introduction Environmental protection in the ASEAN countries has been subject to considerable change over the past decade, and the regulatory authorities are de manding higher levels of compliance with environmental regulations. In some cases industry is findi ng that meeting these requirements is difficult, and substantial investment is necessary. In so m e cases the level of investment can threaten the viability of the industry and its ability to continue in operation . With these dema nds, it is essential fo r industry to take a holistic view of its operations, and to ensure th at improvements are formulated with a long term strategy for sustainable operation of the business. Various terms can be used to describe this process; in this paper it is shown how "cleaner production" provides a valuable framewo rk for developing a profitable and sustainabl e bus iness. A lmost a decade ago, following consultations held with ASEAN, the Australian Agency for International Development (AusAID) recognised the imp ortance of cleaner production in the region's manu fac turing industries. It was also recognized that a key need of this program was to achieve compliance with environmental regulations, and consequ ently improving wastewater tr eatment wo uld b e a necessary component of the project. This led to the design and implementation of the Waste Water Treatment Technology Transfer an d Cleaner Production D em onstration Project as part of the third phase of the ASEAN Australia Economic Coo p e ration Program (AAECP). This project has now been completed, and this paper outlines the overalJ approach , the successes, and the lessons learnt.

Corporation of Victoria. Egis Australia and EPA Victoria had major involvements in the project, providing technical guidance and training. Each of th e country programs involved a counterpart agency which brought strong linkages with industry and the technical skills relevant to the area and which carried out the in count1y implem entation. T he key objective of the project was to demonstrate the reduction of waste generation and improvement of the quality of waste water discharges from the textile, food processing and distilling industries, and to raise awareness of cleaner technology, waste minimisation and waste water treatment. It was also an objective to develop links between Australian and ASEAN tertiary institutions, research institutions, and private sector businesses and associations.

Key components of t he project included: â&#x20AC;˘ Technology Demon stration including waste audits, process improvements, installing and demonstrating cleaner techno logy and impro ved wastewater treatment. â&#x20AC;˘ Technology Transfer - involving a program of prelimi nary workshops, seminars, study tours and training activities, preparation of guidelin es and educational videos. The industry sectors and countries involved in the project were: Distilleries: Malaysia* , Thailand Food (Brewe1y): Vietnam* Food (Confectione1y): Vietnam Food (Fruit juice) : Philippines* Food (Sugar): Indonesia* Food (Tapioca starch) : Thailand*, Indonesia

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Food (Winery) : Malaysia • Textiles: Philippines* Selected sites representative of all of the indicated industry sectors were assessed and audited in the program; those that progressed to the demonstration phase are indicated by an asterix. T he priorities in the project were, in highest priority first: • reduce waste at source (quantity and hazard) through changes in product, process technology, process operations, raw materials • reuse waste on site (eg save, reuse, reclaim, use) • reuse off site • treatment (compliance and to reduce hazard) • disposal (landfill) or storage

Overall Approach The overall approach taken involved the conventional steps of planning and organisation, site selection, assessment, initial field waste audits and reports, further information gathering, sampling and testing, pilot trials where necessary, preparation of reports and recommenda-

PRODUCTION

tions for improvement, approval and decision on improvements, implementation, monitoring, assessment, training. An important initial step was site selection w hich required the development of a selection process and selection criteria. Once sites had been selected the next stage of identifying options fo r cleaner production and improvements was a critical one, and a systematic approach using check.lists and worksheets was adopted, pooling the knowledge of the assessment team with that of technical and operational staff of the co mp any. The c h ec klists and worksheets included sheets focusing on briefing management, information gathering (eg site inspection, environmental legislation/ licences, environmental management system, overview of activities, process diagrams, raw materials, wastes and emissions, w aste treatment), and identifying and assessing options. It was fou nd that this approach , in all cases, provided an excellent oven liew of the issues relating to compliance and sustainability, and th e identification of options for improvement which could be assessed in more detail.

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As options were assessed, the need for specialist technical inputs was identified and specialists were engaged to address particular issues as necessary.

Findings Main Issues

In the ASEAN countries, the most pressing issue for industry is achieving co mpli a n ce wi th regulations for wastewater discharge, w ith a secondary focus on reducing cost and wastage, and reducing wastes and wastewater. Because wastewaters are often simply discharged to a drainage system which leads to a river or ocean, and there is not a centralised municipal wastewater treatment plant, regulations are set on the basis of protecting the receiving water, and as such are stringent and difficult to comply with. This can be contrasted with Australian industry, where today wastewater discharges are usually in compliance with regulations, and the prime focus is on increasing profitability thro ugh reducing costs, wastage, and reducing wastes and wastewater. In most cases Australian industry will discharge to a municipal sewerage system, and the compliance requirements are more relaxed and easier to comply with than w here direct discharge to a natural receiving water may be involved. Regulatory Compliance

In terms of ac hieving regulatory compliance, it was found: • Wastewater: most of the ASEAN factories had some treatment, but this often was not functioning properly and discharges were not in compliance w ith the environmental regulations. In all of <the countries the regulatory authorities were becoming less accepting of this situation, and all of the factories that were in this situation saw that ongoing noncompliance would th re ate n their operation, and if they could not correct the situation they would be required to shut down or move. • Air emissions: significant air emission problems were not observed reflecting the food manufacturing secto r, although there were odours and some instances w here product was lost through poor recovery from a product dryer exhaust. • Land and groundwater: contamination of land and groundwater is generally not yet recognised as a problem in most of the ASEAN countries, and it was observed that existing practices could lead to soil and groundwater problems (such as can be associated w ith large evaporative ponds), and miscellaneous fuel spillage and sludge disposal problems.

CLEANER

Solut ions to t he Wastewate r Problem

Achieving a sustainable solution to achieving compliance with wastewater clischarge regulations for the factories with intractable wastewater (such as the distilleries) required a holistic view of the prod u ction operations and the surrounding environment, searching for a set of options which avoided the need for treatment and disposal of wastewater to natural waters. W here the wastewater was readily treatable, then upgrading the treatment plant was a possible option. For example : • D i stille ries: the strategy involved a combination of composting to evaporate wastewater and convert into a saleable product, irrigation , and recycling within the factory to minimise the volume of wastewater. • Starch : various measures within the factory to minimise the wastewater and its strength and improve recovery of useful byproducts (such as waste solids for animal feed), pretreatment of the wastewater (such as solids sep aration) to simplify the fi nal treatment, and irrigation. • T e x tiles: measures to reduce the quantity and strength of wastewater, and improved wastewater treatment. • B rewery, fruit juice , sugar, confecti o nery, win ery : various measures within the facto1y to minimise wastewater and its strength and improve recovery of useful byproducts (such as yeast for animal feed), followed by improved final wastewater treatment. In terms of identifying the best option, it was critical to develop a mass balance which identified the various sources of wastes and their load, options w ithin the fact01y for minimising each of these at so u rce, options fo r simple pretreatment to simplify the wastewater treatment requirement (such as segregation o r settlement), and options outside the factory fo r use of the various waste and wastewater components. In terms of improving wastewater treatment, key issues were: • Solids: avoid solids entering wastewater streams. Often it is relatively easy to avoid solids entering water streams. Once solids are present, they can add very substantially to the treatment problem, and options for recovery and reuse are diminish ed. • Pro duct: ensuring that product does not enter the wastewater stream. Often the loss of profit and waste load associated with a product such as fruit juice or search is not appreciated - only a 1% of loss of product into the wastewater stream can represent a substantial profit loss and a

PRODUCTION

substantial contribution to the overall wastewater treatment load. • Use of existing treatment plants: all of the fac tories had existing treatment plants, and it was common that the most cost effective solution was to simply adapt and add to the existing equipment, rather than building a new plant. Often quite innovative usage of existing tanks and equipment was required, changing their use. • Inc reased biomass retention: a common issue was the need to increase the recycle and retention of biomass in the wastewater treatment system, to improve the rate and effectiveness of treatment. • Improved aeratio n : a common issue was the need to improve the level of aeration. • Training and m aintenance support: often wastewater treatment was seen to be a low priority and money spent on it was a loss in profit, unskilled staff were resp onsible for the operation of the treatment plant , and accordingly the treatment plants rapidly became inoperative and in ve1y poor state of repair. It

was an essential aspect of the strategy to ensu re that the factory management realised the importance of the overall waste issues, and assigned appropriate attention to them. None of the factories assesse d had an Environm e n t al Management System (such as ISO 14001) . Ach ieving Improved Product ion Efficiency

It was a surprising outcome of the project that it was often possible to achieve substantial gains in production efficiency, even in proven and long established processes. The measures were quite diverse, and included, for example: • Fruit Juice : pregrading the fruit to increase throughput and decrease waste • A lcoh o l: improving the fermen tation process by improved mixing, increasing the yield of alcohol • Starc h : reduced loss of starch from improved separation pro cesses (solid/liquid centrifuges, and air emissions from product d1ying) • B eer: Improved one-vessel fermentation T hese improvements were identified through a combination of systematic

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assessment, brainstorming, and reference to other similar operations. Achieving Sustainable Operation

The process o f ca rrying out a system atic evaluation and analysis of regulat01y compliance, waste generation and disposal, and overall efficiency in all cases increased the awareness of senior m anagement of the factories to the issues, and led them to an appreciation of th e potential increases in profit and the ability to better secure the long term survival of their b usiness thro ugh the clean \';r production approach. · Imp o r tant aspects of achieving sustainable operation were : • D eveloping an u nderstanding of how the industry fits within the broader community, and the whole of the production and use cycle, including use and disposal of wastes (such as returning nutrients usefully to land rather than discharging them to rivers). • Developing an awareness by senior management of the linkages between wastes and profitability, and waste minimisation and regulatory compliance. • Analysing the whole supply chain network, for example working with suppliers of feed materials to mutual benefit • Achieving reliable compliance with regulatory requirements in the longer term and being a good neighbour • Recognising potential future problems and avoiding them, such as groundwater and land contatnination (eg ponds) • Developing options for waste disposal which have a high degree of certainty and enable the fac tory to retain control (for example, not relying entirely on fa rmers for acceptance of a wastewater stream for irrigation) . Other areas where improvements were identified included: • Improved housekeeping and reductions in spillage and wastage, such as may occur through improved cleaning and washing methods, and spillage avoidance. • Improved fuel storage to avoid spillage of fuel and potential soil and groundwater problems. • Improved methods of eflluent pond design and operation, to maximise their treatment potential. Important Observations

T here were a number of observations, w hich in hindsight may be seen to be obvious, but are important to recognise: • Potential for Improvement: it is always uncertain as to whether a cleaner production assessm.ent will yield useful

WATER MAY 2002

PRODUCTION

improvem ent in a fact01y's operations. However, in this program it was found that in all cases significant improvement strategies were identified, and som e were so significant that it made the difference between the factoty surviving or not su rviving. • Waste Minimisation: although waste minimisation is a desirable outcome, it is essential to ensure that measures adopted do not jeopardise product quality or hygiene standards. For example, washing must still be effective. • Irrigation: wh ile ir ri gatio n of wastewater can offer significant environmental and cost benefits, and a sustainable solution to the waste problem, it is essential that the fact01y work closely w ith the regulatoty authority to ensure that approvals are obtained for sensible solutions. In some cases regulations may not permit high strength wastes to be ini.gated, even if cani.ed out at appropriate application rates. Physical locatio n (distance) and size of farms (if small) m ay mean that the effort in getting the wastewater to the user is too costly, and irrigation is not practical. In any irrigation strategy, it is essential that the long term needs of the soil and crops be considered; there must be a balance in salts and nutrients, run off and gro undwater effects must be avoided, and the seasonal requirements and the need for sto rage at times must be considered. • Composting: in assessing composting, it is important to understand w hat the composting is achieving. Composting can be simply a ~eans of evaporating wastewater and avoiding discharge, or it can be a means of improving its stability and aesthetic nature. T he waste may not need to be treated prior to composting. • Fertiliser: the waste m ay have value as a fertiliser (such as distillery slops resulting from th e fe rmentation of molasses, which are high in potassiu m). H owever, to be acceptable as a fertiliser, it can be necessary to add other salts to achieve a desired N:P:K ratio, and it may also be necessary to change its physical nature (eg to a powder). • Aesthetics: the nature of the waste material can be a critical factor in gaining acceptance of a reuse option. For example, if a waste or wastewater is obnoxious in smell or appearance, then a sensible use may be precluded because the end users will not accept it. It may be necessary to carry out additio nal treatment steps or change the physical form of the material siniply to make it aesthetically acceptable. In developing strategies, working closely with the end

users to ensure that their needs are met is essential.

Conclusions The main conclusions drawn from the project were: • Undertaking a systematic review using the principles of cleaner production identified substantial opportunities for improvem ent for each of the factories. In some cases the improvements were of such significance that they made the difference between closu re and success. • Achieving compliance with regulations fo r discharge of wastewater was the most imp o rtant issue of co n cern to the facto ries. In the ASEAN countries it is now the situation that if factories do not comply with regulations, it is likely that the facto ry will be shut dow n, or made to move. • In some cases the improvements can have relevance and application across a larger number of facto ries in a region. The dem onstration project approach has significant merit in providing the basis for getting groups of companies together, perhaps through an indust1y association, and developing strategies of general applicability and value for all the participating companies.

Acknowledgments The au thors wis h to gratefully acknowledge AusAID's kind permission to publish information collected during the implementation of the WasteWater Treatment Technology Transfer and C leaner Productio n D emo nstration P roj ect. The support of AusAID in funding the project is gratefully acknowledged. The support and technical inputs to the project provided by the industries and counterpart agencies in each of the countries involved in the project, and in particular: BAPEDAL (Indonesia) SIRIM (M alaysia) ITDI -DOST (Philippines), King Mongut's U niversity of Technology Thonburi (Thailand) and the R esearch Institute for Brewing (Vietnam), are also gratefully acknowledged.

The Authors Dr Peter Nadebaum is the National Manager, Environment and Dr Thean C. Chong is th e Chief Che mical Engineer with Egis Consulting Australia. Andrew G. Cikalov, FIE Aust, is a free lance Consultant who managed the project for t h e Ove rseas Proj ects Corporation of Victoria. Email contacts: Nadebaump@egis.com.au; chongc@ egis.com. au; cikalova@ m elbp c.org.au

SUSTAINABLE OPERATION OF DISTILLERIES T C Chong, P R Nadebaum, A G Cikalov Introduction Under the third phase of the ASEAN Australia E conomic Cooperation Program fund ed by the Australian Agency for In ternational D evelopment (AusAID) de m onstration projects were carri ed out in each of five ASE AN countri es to develop a systematic and sustainable approach to managing industrial waste in the distillery, food, and textile sectors, as well as developing t ec h n olog ical awareness and encouraging a multil ate ral exc hange of ideas thro u gh workshops and se minars. The project was managed by th e Overseas P roj ects Co rporation ofVictoria Ltd (OPCV). This paper summari ses the work carried out to solve the wastewater disp osal problem for the distille1y indusny in ASEAN and the outcom es achieved.

Existing Effluent Disposal Practice and Problems The Malaysian Distillery

Th e distillery in Malaysia treated the wastewater by an anaerobic treatment system . Th e BOD and COD of the treated eillu ent was in the order of 1000 - 8000 mg/L and 23,000 m g/L, respectively, w hile the standard for discharge to river was 50 m g/L and 100 m g/L respectively. There was no sewage treatment plant in the area to receive the wastewater for fu rther treatment. Since the treated efflu e nt co uld not be discharged to the river, it was trucked approximately 10 km to a nearby sugar cane plantation for di sposa l by irriga tion. At the plantation th e eill uent was stored in 5 ponds, and irrigated over three areas each in the o rder of70 m radius, and one semi-circular area of perhaps 200 111 radius in the plantation . The inigation rates used were high, in the o rder of 7,000 1113 p er ha per year. There was som e crop damage in the area of irrigation, indicating that the irrigation practice was not sustainable and would not be able to be continued indefinitely. The black and odorous nature of the effluent was also of concern to the workers in the cane fields.

The development of a long term sustainable solution to this problem is discussed in the later sections this paper. The Thai Distillery

T he distillery in T hailand util ised a number of m ethods of effluent disposal and, althou gh the wastewater disposa l practices complied with licence requirements, they had not reached a long term sustainable solution. Of the 45 0 1113 / day of effl uent produced, approximately 210 m 3/day was disposed ofby evaporation , 44 1113 /day was disposed ofby irrigatio n, 42 111 3 /day was di s p osed o f by co mposting, and there was 150 111 3/day which was not able to be disposed of and accumulated in storage. D etails of the methods of treatm ent and disposal were: T r eatmen t : p orti on of the wastewater were treated in an anaerobic reactor followed by further treatment in an Quantity and Quality of extensive pond system , and the remainder Wastewater by direct discharge to the pond system. Typically the wastewater produced Th e pond system comprised 6 lagoons, with a total water area in the order of26.5 fr om disti!Jing fe rmented molasses to ha. T he COD in the final pond was in produce industrial ethanol has very high the order of60,000 mg/L w hich was not COD and TDS. A significant proportion able to meet the standard for discharge of t h e organi c substances in t h e to river (120 m g/L), and other methods wastewater is difficult to biodegrade, and had to be utilised fo r disposal experience in m any parts of of the eilluent . the world indicates that it is Table 1. Ana lysis of Distillery Wastewat er E v aporation: because the not economically feasible to humidity and the rain fa ll in Parameters Malaysian Distillery Thailand Distillery treat it to a level which will ------the area were relatively high, PH 4.3-4.6 4.5 comply with the normal the net average evaporation Temp.(on-site) (OC) 68-86 regulatory discharge limits rate in the ponds was only COD (mg/ L) 112,500 - 122,500 139,500 for rivers. 8 1113 /day per ha. Even BODs (mg/ L) 42,600 - 54,600 43,890 Two distilleries w ere though the ponds were Oil & grease (mg/L) 64 - 88 1,120 extensive (26. 5 ha), they involved m this proj ect, Total acidity (mg/L) 4,830 - 7,372 910 could only account for 40 one in Malaysia and another TSS (mg/L) 8 ,075 - 21,250 37,040 50 1113/day net evaporation. o n e 111 Thailand. The TVSS (mg/L) 6,520 - 18,925 6 ,520 There was also concern that c h a r acter i s t i cs o f the TDS (mg/ L) 90,980 - 92,260 18,190 reliance on large evapowastewater generated from TKN (mg/ L) 4 16 - 3,51 2 1,840 rative ponds could introduce these two facto ries ar e Chloride (mg/L) 945- 4,280 1 ,400 problems involving groundsummatised in Table 1. The Total P (mg/L) 29 - 39 40 water contamination and volume of the w astewater Su lphate (mg/L) 1,176 - 1 ,7 26 salinisation of the underlying was approxima t ely 200 Sodium (mg/L) soil. 64-85 61 .50 m 3 I d for the Malaysia n Potass ium (mg/L) 5 ,5 00 - 7,300 3,050 Irri gation : portion of the distillery and 450 m 3/ d for eilluent was trucked from Sulphide (mg/L) 5 .5 - 7.2 the Thai distillery. the final pond to farms in the WATER MAY 2002

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surroundi ng area (5 - 20 km distant) for irrigation over an area of approximately 160 ha. T he practice of the farmers was to irrigate 0. 16 ha ofland with 12 1113 of eilluent on a one application basis at the time of planting. This might be repeated if there were two plantings of the crop per year, resulting in 24 1113 per 0.16 ha per year. This corresponds to an application rate of 7 - 15 111111 per year, or 75 - 150 1113 per ha per year. Although this was likely to be acceptable in the medium term (several years), there was concern that it was higher than ra tes deemed to be sustainable elsewhere (eg 10 - 15 1113 per ha per year practised in Australia) and could give rise to a build up in salts in the soil and an adverse effect on plant growth and soil structure. Composting: the composting operation involved purchasing bagasse from a sugar refinery, spreading in windrows and the addition of raw wastewater to the bagasse together with a starter mi croo rganism culture prepared by the distill ery's laboratory. Wastewater was added to the compost on the basis of regulating the compost temperature (70Â°C maximum). No nutrients were required for the composting operation. The composting took 4 months to complete a batch. The compost and sludge from the primary treatment pond were mixed together, and dried. The dry mixture sieved and bagged for sale. The overall mass balance for the operation was: 2 tonnes of bagasse + 5 tonnes of wastewater or sludge produced 1 tonne of compost.

PRODUCTION

The compost produced in this process was free of odour, and had the appearance of a rich brown soil. T he distillery was able to sell the material to a dealer for a good return, w ith no limit on the amount of com post product which could be sold. W hile there had been no limit on the quantity of bagasse available, the factory had to search for bagasse and there was not a large surplus of the material. In Malaysia bagasse was fully used as a fuel for power generation in sugar mills, and was not available for composting. T his suggests that the long term supply of bagasse for composting in Thailand may be limited. T he composting operation provided fo r disposal of an average of 42 1113 / day eilluent over the year, based on a utlisation rate of 100 1113 / day per ha during the dry season (8 months of the year). On a land area basis, composting is a much more intensive process than simple evaporation in ponds. In the case of the Thai distiUery, it can be seen that although the wastewater disposal practices were in compliance with licen ce requirements , they did not offer a sustainable solution because of limitations in using ponds for evaporation and the relatively high irrigation application r ates. I nc r eas ing the amou n t of composting had potential to offer a sustainable operation, but the availability ofbagasse in the long tem1 was of concern.

Development of a Sustainable Wastewater Disposal Strategy As the w astewater disposal practices used by the distill eries were [AC4]not sustainable, other means had to be developed to so lve the problem of wastewater disposal. A " clea ner production" approach to the problem was used to analyse the problem for each factory, and to identify options which would offer a sustainable solution. This work led to the developm ent of a strategy and a program of work which would lead to a sustainable solution for each distillery. Various alternatives were identified and considered; these included: reducing the wastewater volume (eg by recycling stillage, or mechanical evaporation); more extensive use of composting utilising alternatives to bagasse which had a lower value and were more widely available; and sustainable irrigation. Following a review of the two distilleries and the proposed programs of work, the Malaysian distillery was selected for demonstration purposes in the distillery sector and further investigations focused on the need for achieving more acceptable disposal options. Funding was made available to support the investigations and provide equipment to demonstrate the preferred options. Recycling Stlllage

A simple method of reducing the volume of wastewater is to recycle it, for example, by substituting stillage for a

Table 3. Initial Results of Stillage Recycle Trials Trial program

Alcohol Total Solids before Total solids, after fermentation, fermentation, concentration in fermented product, % w/ w % w/ w

Alcohol yield, litre/ molasses used, tonnes

Fermentation efficiency %

Stlllage brlx

Normal fermentation

6 .7

13.3

1.6

220

79.5

13.3

Stillage replacing 1 0% of fresh water used in MT, YT, & FT

6.7

13.6

2.5

218

77.7

1 5.6

Stillage replaci ng 40% of f resh water used in FT (15% over all)

6.8

13.4

2 .4

223

79.6

1 6.2

St illage replacing 50% of fresh water used in FT (22% over all)

5.7

1 4.0

4 .0

184

63.5

18.0

Stillage replacing 40% of fresh wat er used in FT (15% over al l)

6 .8

13.6

2.5

219

78.2

16 .6

Stil lage replacing 40% of fresh water used in FT (15% over all)

6 .7

13 .5

2.4

220

78.1

15.8

Note: MT

= Molasses solution tank,

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= Yeast

cu lture tank, FT

= Fermentation tank.

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portion of the molasses dilution water in th e fe rmentatio n process. T here has been reference in the literature to this being used by some fac to ries (eg "Utilisatio n, Treatment, and disposal of DistilJery W astewater", by G . J. Sheehan and P. F. Gree nfield, W ater R esearch, Vol. 14 N o.3, 1980 p259-260), with substitution as high as 50% in one case. H owever, there has been very little detailed techn ical information published on stillage recycling and the requirements fo r its successful ap plication. B ecause the quality of molasses varies from source to so urce and the fe rmentation practice varies from factory to fa ctory, it is possible that the requ irements for successfu l recycli ng w ilJ vary with a particular factory. In order to determine the important requirements, recycling experiments were carried o ut in a laboratory using a 5 litre pilo t fermenter. T his w ork involved the follo wing: • E stablishing the methods fo r analysis of raw mola sses, still age, fe rmentatio n mix tures and ethanol • Preli minary sc reen ing testw o rk to dete rmine limitatio ns in recycling, based o n measure men t of carbon dioxide released and ethanol content in the filtered fermented molasses mixtu re . • Testing of fermented mixture(s) to measure actual ethanol yield as a fu nction of recycling percentage. • O p timisatio n o f th e fe rmentation process fo r th e stillage mix ture that produced the highest ethanol yield. The experiments indicated that it was possible to use stillage to replace 40 % of the fresh dilution water for preparatio n of the feed stock fo r fe rmentation without

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a noticeable reduction in alcohol yield, fo r two consecutive fennentations. When the stilJ age was recycled the third time with the same replacement rate, the alcohol yield dropped by approximately 26% compared to that when the stillage was recycled the first time. The cause of th e drop was not de termined in these tests. T his initial test work suggested that a full scale op eration using stillage to replace 40% of the fresh dilution water for fermentation fo r tw o cycles with no stillage being used for th e third cycle would result in an overall stillage recycle rate of 2 6%, an d a c omme nsurate reduction in effl uent volume . Discussion with the factory operators indicated that the preferred approach would be to use stillage replacement on a continuous basis, at a lower replacement level (eg. 10% - 30%) w hi ch would not reduce alcohol yield . Full scale trials involving a 60 1113 fermenter were carried out on this basis. The results of the initial trials are summarised in Table 3. The initial full scale trial suggested that it would be possible to achieve a reduction in stillage of only 15%, w hich w as relatively low compared with that (26%) achieved in the laboratory. T he trial suggested that if higher recycle rates w ere to be used, the alco hol yields would drop to an unacceptable level. A comparison of the laborato ry test conditions and those of the full scale trial indicated that the mixing conditions were quite different. In the full scale system only very limited mixing occurred during the fermentation period, whereas the p ilot fermenter was agitated thro ughout the fermentatio n. This suggested that th e full

scale fermentation tank should be agitated througho ut the fermentatio n perio d to inc rease the fermentatio n efficiency. To test this, th e full scale (60 1113) fe rmenter was installed with a mixing system involving a pump capable o f pumping 90 m 3/ h. T he pum p drew the ferm ented mash from the bottom and delivered it to the top of the liquid layer on the opposite side of the fe rmenter. The results of the trials are summarised in Table 4. T he results indicated that: • the highest ethanol yield per fermentation was obtained using continuo us mixing, and that the yield was significantly higher than when there w as no mixing. T he increase in ethanol yield achieved by mixing was in the order of 4 15 Lid per fermentation, with a reduced fermentation time (18 h rather than 24 h), representing a 25% increase in overall productivity. T he increased alcohol value was approximately RM830/ d (A$=R.M2.2) p er day. • Although the ethanol yield per fermentation was higher, the ethanol yield per kg of sugar consumed in the fermentation process was reduced with continuous mixing, and w as reduced with recycle (with and w ithout mixing) . T he reasons fo r this were not clear, although it was possible that the mixing gave rise to increased evaporation of the alco hol (the ferm entatio n tank w as open to the atmosphere and was not equipp ed with a condenser). Sustainable irrigation of Wastewater

T he distillery wastewater is rich 111 po tassium, which is an important nutrient for sugar ca ne. T his suggests that the use of wastewater fo r irrigation offers the

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ability co return important nut1ients to the soil, and to reduce the cost of fertiliser. General practice at the sugar cane plantation is grow the cane to a 3-year ratoon, harvest, and replant after harvest, with PKN fertiliser being added after harvesting. An irrigation tria l program was developed and carried out w ith the objective of demonstrating a sustainable irrigation practice for disposal of wastewater. An experimental plot size of 900 m 2 was used for the demonstration. A key objective of the experiment was to confi rm tha t th e irrigation of wastewater at the selected application rate would not adversely affect plant growth. An application rate of 10 1113 / ha of wastewater was adopted, with application of the wastewater at the time of planting. The wastewater was supplemented with potassium, phosphorus and nitrogen such that the irrigation of the wastewater on to the cane field complied with the normal fertiliser application rates of 180

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kg N, 32 kg P and 150 kg K per hectare used for the plantation. During plant growth samples of the cane were taken and analysed to monitor the progress of cane height, tiller number, girth, leaf composition, and sugar quality over the growth period. Soil analyses were also carried out to deternu ne if there was any effect on the pH, TKN, TP, ash, exchangeable K, Ca, and Mg in the soil due to the irrigation of the wastewater. The results of the monitoring program indicated that the irrigation utilising wastewater appeared to have no adverse effect on plant growth, productivity and quality of the cane juice. As an outcome of these trials, a system for econonucally transporting, scoring and irrigating wastewater over large areas of the cane field was developed. Sustainable Composting

In Thailand, composting using bagasse and distillery wastewater is a well developed process and is able to produce a marketable compost.

In Malaysia, bagasse was not available and it was necessary to determine if other materials could be used. Large volumes of waste rice husk were available near the area of the distillery and this was trialed by the distillery as a substitute for bagasse, with trials of the resulting compost carried out by farmers in the area for a va1iety of crops. T his work indicated that the resulting compost could be successfully used in agriculture, and w as acceptable to the farmers. The distillery is now in the process of establishing a composting plant using rice husks and wastewater as the raw materials. The distillery is also carrying out trials involving thermal evaporation to reduce the volume of wastewater and reduce the area required for composting. In general, the costs of thermal evaporation can be expected to be relatively high, because of the cost of energy and operating evaporators (which can be expected to have a high cleaning requirement) .

Table 4. Summary of Final Stillage Recycle Trial Results (Data shown is the averaged value) Normal (control)

10% recycle

15% recycle (first trial)

22% recycle

15% recycle (2nd trial)

15% recycle (3rd trial)

15% recycle (final trial)

15% recycle

WOMC

WMC

1 22

Molasses, Tonne

19.4

1 9.6

19.6

20.0

19.7

19.5

19.6

Initial Sugar Content, kg

9235

9483

9406

9981

9486

9429

9246

9596

Final sugar Content*, kg

1054

1708

1621

2783

1669

1619

1396

996

Sugar Consumed*, kg

8180

7770

7784

7197

7817

7810

7850

8600

Alcohol Yield, L

4275

4279

4357

3686

4318

4281

4256

4436

Alcohol Yiel d/ Molasses, L/tonne

220

218

223

184

219

218

227

% of Sugar Consumed

88.6

81.9

82.8

72.1

82.4

82.8

84.9

89.6

Alcohol Yield/ Initial Sugar Content, L/kg

0.46

0.45

0.46

0 .37

0.46

0.45

0.46

0 .46

Alcohol Yield/ Sugar Consumed*, L/ kg

0.52

0 .55

0.56

0.51

0.55

0 .55

0.54

0.52

Fermentation Efficiency Based on Sugar Consumed, %

81.7

86.4

87.8

80.4

86.6

85.8

84.9

80.7

Parameter

No. of Batches Completed

Note:

W0MC= Without mash agitation continuou sly WMC = With mash agitation continuously *Calcu lated on the assumption that vol ume of material does not change after fermentation.

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Importance of Stakeholder Acceptance

The work has shown the importance of ensuring that there is acceptance of any strategy which is decided upon. There are a number of important stakeholders chat need to be considered: • The conununicy can be concerned if the efiluent or the distillery operations are odorous, the efiluent is visibly objectionable (ie black liquid), and if spills to the environment have occurred in the past. If the co mmunity gains t he perception that th e distillery is p olluting, then it is possible that this will influence the regulatory authorities and they will become very strict in their requirements, and may ultimately require the factory to be shut down or moved. • Farmers can be concerned if they are being offered material for use on their fa rm s (such as efiluent for irrigation) if the material is objectionable or there is potential (real or perceived) that the material might adversely affect their crops or land. In this, the aesthetic nature of th e material can be critical. In the case of irrigating wastewater, the appearance and odour may not be acceptable, the material may attract vermin, and the farmers may prefer to use fresh water and manufactured fertilisers even if there is some monetary saving. Alternatively, it may be necessary to use methods such as composting or evaporation and mixing with a substrate such as rice husks to co n vert the material into a mo re acceptable and easily handled material. This is especially the case if the farmer is relying on workers who are exposed to the material and are not as directly co ncern e d with moneta ry saving. Conversely, in the case of compost, if the material has the appearance of a rich soil, then this may be very acceptable and sought after. In the case of the Malaysian distillery, such problems were of significant concern and threatened the ongoing operation of the factory. The development o f a sustainable strategy acceptable to the various stakeholders was critical in ensu ring that the distillery would be able to continue operation, and provided a different economic framework for evaluating the feasi bility of options.

Conclusions Regarding Sustainable Distillery Practices At t empting t o treat disti ll ery wastewater so that it can be disposed of to n atural water bodies is not economically feasible, and ocher methods of

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disposal of wastewater must be used. There are a number of alternatives that can be considered; these include the use of the wastewater in preparation of a compost or fe rtiliser, irrigation , and methods of m.inirnising the quantity of the efiluent by recycling stillage or evaporation. Critical factors in the successful long term application of these methods are: • A combination of options is desirable, so that there is not reliance on a single option w hich, if it should fail, would j eopardise the operation of the distillety. • O ptions which provide net environmental benefit are highly desirable, if these can be found. In the case of distillery wastewater, the high potassium content can provide a significant reduction in fe rtiliser costs if used by sugar cane plantations at the time of replanting. • Acceptance of the strategy by the various stakeholders (conununity, fa rmers and regulators) is essential, and long term agreements need to be obtained for the options adopted. • T he aesthetic properties of the effluent or product can be a critical fac tor in

gaining its acceptance; this may justify options and expenditure which would not be justified on solely technical and economic grounds.

Acknowledgements The authors gratefully acknowledge AusAID's kind permission to publish information collected during the implementation of the wastewater treatment techno l ogy tra n sfer a n d cleaner production demo nstration project. T he support and technical inputs to the project from the staff of the distilleries and Sirim (Kuala Lumpur) and King Mongut's U niversity ofTechnology (Bangkok) are also gratefully acknowledged.

The Authors Dr Peter Nadebaum is the National Manager, Environment and Dr Thean C. Chong is the Chief C hemical Engineer with Egis Consulting Australia. Andrew G. Cikalov, FIE Au st, is a freelance Consultant and managed the project for the Overseas Projects Corporation of Victoria. Email Contacts: Nadebaump@ egis .co m.au; cho n gc@egi s.com.au; cikalova@melbpc.org.au

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THE DATONG GASIFICATION PLANT P Baker, A Baker sign ifi ca n t n egative environmental imp acts Many major industries remaining for w hich they are based within Shanxi are well known. Province, in the Peoples One such solution is Repub l ic of C h ina, thro ugh the su ccessful including coal gasification implementation of Cleaner plants which were built to P ro d uction. At t h e reduce the air pollution DCCC, the DCEP is generated by the burning of provid ing support to coal. H owever, these facilenable the identification i ties have contrib u ted an d implementation of significantly to local water Cleaner Production pollution problems. The measures w hich w ill allow Datong Coal Gasification th e plan t t o con t inue Corporation (DCGC) is operation and achieve o ne such plant. Scarce and appropriate environm.ental valuable water resources pe1formance. This concept are polluted by wastewater was seen as a suitable d i scharges fr o m t h e methodology as the lessons DCGC, including part of Plat e 1. Datang Coal Gasification Corporation , Shanxi, China. learnt and technologies B eijing's domestic water applied from this approach supply. could be replicated at si1n ilar coal gasifiC hina resolved to proceed with a cleaner T he D atong Cleaner Environment environment proj ect fo r the M unicipality cation plants. Proj ect (D CEP), an A u s t r a li a n of Dato ng in Shanxi Province. T his The D atong Cleaner E nvironmental Government-funded AusAID Project, is proj ect would be foc used at the D atong Proj ect was developed using this approach working in cooperation with the DCGC Coal Gasification Company (D CGC), as as a basis. T he Project team from Egis in the identification and implementation Consulting Australia, H atch Engineering well as the local Environmental Protection of Cleaner Production initiatives at the and H assall & Associates supported by Bureau (EPB) and Water Resources Coal Gasification plant. In addition, the local specialists started on site in Datong M anagement O ffice (WRMO). P roject is also working w ith the local in April 2001 and plan to complete the The D CGC is a St at e Owned E nvironmental Protection Bureau (EPB) three year proj ect in April 2004. E nterprise, w hich manufactu res coal gas and Water R esources Management Office and o ther prod uc ts, using coal fro m Goals, Project Purpose and (WRM O) to improve their capacity to unde rgrou nd coal mi nes in Shanxi St akeholders manage environmental issues. This paper Province. Im pacts to land, water and air provides backgrou nd and discussion on T he goal of the D atong Cleaner quality fro m existing coal gas and coke Environment Proj ect (D CEP) is: the commencement phases of the work manufacturing processes are significant. It carried out with DCGC specifically "To improve the environment, and is the extent of these impacts upon the hence the living conditions and health of aimed at achieving sustainable Cleaner residents of Datong which led to the residents of the Datong Municipality and Production at the coal gasification plant. surrounding region." formulation of the AusAID fu nded It focuses on the approaches implemented Datong C leaner E nvironment Proj ect T he purpose of th e Project includes: at the DCGC but does not describe the (DCEP). "To increase the capacity of work condu cted at the environment and ....... Dato ng Coal Gasifi c ation The DCCC is not the only coal gasifiwater resource agencies. Corporation ....... " cation plant in Shanxi, but one of 19 such DCEP is in effect a full scale pilot plant, The Project includes a n umber of plants cu rrently in operation within the the lessons and benefi ts from. w hich will programs and activities des igned to Province. W hilst some may argue that the be well recorded so that they may be enhance the capability of the following best solution for the enviromnent would replicated to achieve improvements in o rganisations to better achi eve their be to shut the plants down this would lead plant efficiency and the environment respective functions: to severe financial and economic hardship throughout all of Shanxi Province and • D ato ng E nvironmental Protection in the Shanxi population . In total these hopefully extend throughout greater Bureau (EPB); plants constitute a significant income for China. • Datong Water R esources M anagement the population of Shanxi. T he preferred Introduction O ffice (WR MO); and solution would be to modify these plants can continue to operate, but so tha t they • D atong Coal Gasification Corporation I n 1999-2000 th e Aus t ra lian do so more efficiently and without the (D CGC). Government and the Peoples R epublic of

Abstract

WATER MAY 2002

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In 1996 the Shanxi and D atong Environmental Protection Bu r eaus (EPB's) and D C GC identified di fficulties in compliance with existing environm ental legislation, and the 'overuse' of scarce and valuable local water resources. They had identifi ed that impl em entatio n of changes within the D CGC was critical to improving the local situation. C leaner Production was being implemented elsewhere in the world and they we re interested in understanding how it could apply to their region. In addition to water quali ty, industrial activities in and around Datong, including DCGC, have impacted upon local water resources to the extent that curren tly the wa ter table is estimated to be dropping at a rate of two (2) metres per year. It is fu rther predicted that Data ng will be totally wi thout water by 2040 unless d rastic remedial measures are adopted. Therefore, consistent with reducing the DCGC's overall pollu tant discharge load to th e environment, the DCEP also seeks to minimi se th e D C G C's overall consumption of water. A reduction in the overall co nsump tion of water and pollution fro m the DCGC's waste water disc harges will result in a direct benefi t to downstrea m users. Waters pollu ted by discharges from the DCG C have led to resi dents downstream (Plate 2) experiencing environmental, social, econom ic and health problems. In addition, waters affected by the DCGC make up part of the catchment headwaters for the Cetien reservoir som e 50 kilometres south east o f Datang, which provides water to Beiji ng's do mestic water su pply. Under the D CEP, the D CGC is developing a program o f Clea ner Produ ction

PRODUCTION

initiati ves to reduce pollution from the plant's operations and bring the plant into compliance with local and natio nal environmental standards. National edicts which have been developed in 2001 have mea nt that all industrial discharges must meet national discharge standards by the end of 2002 or risk closure. In addition to the en vironmental benefi ts, it is expected that implementation of C leaner Production initiatives will improve operationa l effic ienc ies and effec tive ness allowing the State Owned Enterprise to become a more eco nomicalJy viable and sustainable operation.

Cleaner Production Program Th e Proj ect Team recognised early in th e project that th e D CGC needed to establish a clear understanding of its managem ent culture in order to provide the best possible senior management suppo rt for th e proposed program. T hrough training in change management, the fundamentals of C leaner Produ ction, th e sustainability of improved environ menta l management, and busi ness and financial planning the D CGC would be in a mu ch better position to become an econo mically viable and environmentally sustainable business. Since its creation as an SOE approximately 13 years ago , th e D CGC has borne both economic and social responsibilities. In such an indu strial climate a c han ge to management culture and technical foundation can be difficu lt to implement. To encourage the required change in a local co ntext a practical consultative action learning process was adop ted to training programs.

Cleaner Production Training China has in place a well-evolved program of Cleaner Production initiatives, with substantial support provided at the na ti o n al l evel throu g h t h e Sta t e Environment Protection Agency (SEPA), a body responsible for evolving national environm en tal policy. C hina's key C leaner Production initiatives are well documented and readily accessible fro m a national C leaner Produ ction website. This site offers an extensive range of information and case studies for review and serves as a relevant learning tool for how Cleaner Production can be successfully implem ented. With DCGC's senior management support the fi rst initiative was the establish ment of a Working Gro up of approximately fifteen people with a broad range of skills, experiences and qualifications from D CGC senior and middle management, operational, maintenance and administration staff. Working Group training included consideration of the principles of C leaner Production and alternatives to end-of-pipe solutions. The hi erarchy of avoidance, recovery-reuse, recycle, and an understanding of Polluter Pays and "good neighbour policy" were all topi cs that were presented. One successful model from the national website demonstrating the application of C leaner Prod uction initiatives at a chemical plant was reviewed with Working Group m embers and comparisons made regarding the potential application of similar C leaner Production initiatives within the DCGC. Participants were shown how adopting "Clean er Production " tec hniqu es r es ulted in improv ed production and economy.

r,-able 1: Cleaner Production Initiatives (Sample) Item No.

Stream or Process

Stream Flow Rate

Contaminants of Concern

Coke Quenching Water

1 50 m3 / h

• Tar • Ammon ia • Phenol • Cyanide • PAHs Th is stream is a major pollutant of the river.

No. The hot coke from t he coking ovens is quenched by steam and water in the discharge hopper at the base of the ovens. The coke quenching water sprays block up with coke breeze if the water is recycled, so fresh water is used. Thus, the water after quenching is discharged to the river. The temperature of the stream is about 6o0 c.

Raw Sewage

600-800 m3 / day

• BOD • Suspended solids • Ammonia • Phosphorus This stream is a major pollutant of the river.

No. Raw sewage is collected in a sewer main from the following buildings: • Coke ovens office • Gas pu rification plant office • Bathhouse This sewer main joins with the ma ins from the main office and the maintenance workshops in a col lection pit. This pit directs the raw sewage into the main plant drain to the river.

Existing Treatment of Stream, Yes/ No or Comment Regarding Process Issue

WATER MAY 2002

CLEANER

PRODUCTION

a series of minor workshops guided by experts from the DCEP were conducted to 'b rainstorm' a range of Cleaner Produ ction options fo r each entry. Following this process the preferred Cleaner Production options were prioritised. Prioritisation of entries in the list was based upon the direct environmental and resource recovery benefits each option presented, and the likely cost and savings from the implementation of Cleaner Production measures identified . Table 1 provides an extract from the list of"Cleaner Production Initiatives. In total, som e 44 entries in six categories were included in the list. Plate 2. Project team leader and three members of All Ch ina Women's Federation

inspect affected land near the Dat ang Coal Gasification Plant. From this the Working Group became very keen to begin implementation of Cleaner Production measures withi n the D CGC. They assessed current plant operations and developed plans for how they wished to improve operations in the short and long term. This emphasis on the long term ensures the potential sustainability of the measures.

Identification of Issues With a reasonable understanding of the principles and application of Cleaner Production techniques, the Working Group members, supported by D CEP personnel and with the full backing of D CGC management, initiated a program to review plant processes and operations. T his review commenced w ith the separation of members of the working group into six teams, each team responsible for a discrete area and range of functions of the D CGC operations.

These key areas and functions, locally "workshops," are listed below: • Coal Preparation; • Gasification and Gas Cooling; • Ammonia Stripping; • Benzol Plant; • D esulfurisation; and • Site support services, including, boiler house, compressor stations and soft water station, site building heating. With a detailed understanding of these areas, the review teams generated a list of waste and operational 'streams' and a series of flow / process diagrams identifying these streams. Assembly of this information was mindful of the long-term objective of ac h ieving successful sustainable implementation of C leaner Production inifiatives at the DCGC. This list was expanded to include information regarding the likely capital expenditure, and p otential changes to operating costs. With the list assembled

The Future Through proper incorporation of these Cleaner Production initiatives into the day to day operations, it is expected that negative impacts to the environment and over-consumption of scarce water resources will be minimised. In the next phase of work to be carried out by the DCGC with the support of the D CEP is a thorough feasibility study. This will be completed to provide clear direction regarding the acquisition and application of funding to implement the Cleaner Production measures identified. Following actual imple1nentation of funded initiatives it will be possible to measure the efficacy of their 'up-take' . Further it will be possible to monitor and document the benefits to the environment, the reduction in consumption of valuable resources, and the improvement to the quality oflife for residents in the surrounding region. Finally, the experiences gained and the lessons learnt can be incorporated into a replication strategy for application at other similar plants. In the subsequent paper we shall demonstrate how the process discussed has led to the effective implementation of C leaner Production and the actual benefits gai n ed, both envi ronmentally an d economically.

The Authors

Plate 3 . Datong Coal Gasification Corporation Plant, coke cooling water breeze basin.

WATER MAY 2002

Dr Phillip Baker is Principal Project Manager wi th the Environmental Management Division ofEgis in Victoria. Dr Alison Baker, an environmental engineer, is R egional Manager, South East Asia, for the Urb an Wate r and Environment Division of the IPS Gro u p of Egis Consulting. Email: bakera@egis.com.au