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As part of our Greater Sydney Water Strategy commitments, we're working hard behind the scenes on building a resilient and reliable water supply for Greater Sydney.
Did you know that we currently rely on rainfall for about 85 per cent of our water supply, with the remaining 15 per cent coming from the Sydney Desalination Plant? As the impacts of climate variability like floods and droughts challenge traditional water management, we’re exploring a range of options to maintain a safe, resilient, and secure water supply, even in times of extreme weather.
Investment in our Resilient and Reliable Water Supply program will enable us to meet our cities’ water demands and maintain an acceptable level of water security risk while avoiding the need for significant whole-of-system investment. We are currently focused on the investigations, planning and consultation on the following key projects which will require further approvals to proceed:
expansion of the Sydney Desalination Plant (SDP) network to be capable of receiving additional drinking water produced by the expanded SDP
new interconnectors to address single points of failure in our water system
Securing our water supply, Quakers Hill to Prospect purified recycled water project.
Combined with our existing assets, purified recycled water (PRW) can help safeguard our city’s water needs for future generations. Together with desalination, PRW could support our dams in providing the world class water we enjoy every day. Using our existing water sources and adding new rainfall independent water supplies ensures we have enough water for our future.
Watch our webinar to expand your knowledge about how water is managed across Greater Sydney. You’ll learn about dams, desalination and why Sydney Water is investigating the use of purified recycled water as a future water source.
The webinar is hosted by Jo Taranto, from Good for the Hood, speaking with Kate Miles, Head of System Planning and Land Acquisition at Sydney Water.
One of our Greater Sydney Water Strategy actions under Priority 2 is to construct and commence the operation of a Purified Recycled Water (PRW) Demonstration Plant and Discovery Centre.
Our Purified Recycled Water (PRW) Discovery Centre opened in October 2023 as part of National Water Week and has had over 2,000 visitors to date. The first of its kind in New South Wales, the facility demonstrates the performance and reliability of the treatment technology used to treat recycled water to a quality suitable to supplement our raw water sources. It also helps to build community understanding and acceptance of PRW, while enabling our employees to build their capability and operational experience with the technology.
Water produced at this Plant does not contribute to Sydney's drinking water supply. Any future decision to include purified recycled water as part of our drinking water supply would involve community consultation and require stringent government approvals.
The PRW Discovery Centre can host small groups, schools, universities/TAFE and community group tours. Tours are free of charge.