A risk management approach to sustainable water reuse

The Hawkesbury Water Reuse Scheme being developed by the ICEM research group at the University of Western Sydney involves the construction of a wetland system on degraded agricultural land to receive and polish low quality stormwater from the town of Richmond with the aim of augmenting existing aquatic habitats, buffering large variations in tributary flow due to urban runoff, and providing an additional source of water for Campus irrigation to replace the chlorinated town water presently in use at certain times of the year. The Scheme will incorporate a long-established sewage effluent irrigation system for University agricultural, horticultural, and recreational land using effluent from the Richmond sewage treatment plant. To ensure sustainability of future stormwater effluent reuse in terms of health, ecological and agricultural considerations, a comprehensive risk management system is being developed as part of a total environmental management system. The health component of this is described in the paper. The initiative integrates a range of research interests and expertise, with the aim of securing improved water use locally and assisting in the development of guidelines, standards and protocols for sustainable water reuse elsewhere.