eFlash #603

Date: 26-Jul-2024

NEW / HOT TOPICS

Award Winners Announced

It is with great pleasure that we can announce the winners of the 2024 Young Operator of the Year and Operator of the Year (Civil/Allrounder) Awards announced at the WIOA QLD Conference last night.

The 2024 Young Operator of the Year is Luke Reid from Bundaberg Regional Council. Luke impressed his supervisors and workmates with his rigorous work ethic and commitment to safety as evidenced by over 1,200 actions in the work management system over his two-year tenure with BRC. All Luke’s actions are accompanied by comprehensive notes and requisite safety documentation, reinforced by commendations from colleagues on his adherence to safe working practices. As well as the trophy and title, Luke received an all-expenses paid opportunity to join the WIOA delegation on their next New Zealand tour.

The 2024 Operator of the Year (Civil) is Ross Watt, Supervisor Water & Sewerage Infrastructure at Gympie Regional Council. You’re likely to find Ross repairing a public hazard he spotted on the school run, his tools always ready in the van, or leading educational sessions with the community, effectively communicating the importance of water management. His nomination form lists a string of achievements including best practice processes and operations, implementing new systems for monitoring and managing water pressure, fostering a collaborative and motivated work environment, contributing to the implementation of a fatigue management strategy and more. Ross receives a trophy and bragging rights, along with professional development opportunities fully funded by qldwater.

There must be something in the water at Bundaberg Regional Council with Josh van Hout joining Luke in the limelight as the 2024 WIOA Operator of the Year. Josh is an incredibly dedicated teacher and mentor to the operations team at Bundy and a huge asset to the water sector as a whole.

We would also like to make a special mention of a Team of the Year nomination we received for the team at Wujal Wujal Aboriginal Shire Council for the way in which they came together to restore community supply in the aftermath of Cyclone Jasper. In the nomination form Wujal Wujal CEO said their commitment to being part of the process to achieve long-term water solutions fostered a sense of confidence and reassurance. The Team of the Year Award will be selected by WIOA later in the year.

Congratulations to all nominees and our very worthy winners for 2024!

Sharing swimlocal data: using WebReports to track puppy growth

Ever wondered how swimlocal can be used outside the usual water reporting? Trust SWIM Manager David Scheltinga to lead the way…

David’s dog, Millie, had 8 puppies on Saturday, 3 female and 5 male in a mix of colours: 4 black, 1 cream, 1 ginger, 1 black and tan, 1 brown and tan. You can track their growth in this swimlocal WebReports graph.

WaterAid Walk for Water

From 2-6 October, qldwater CEO Georgina Davis will be Walking for Water to raise funds for WaterAid that helps people around the world access clean water.

For those five days, she is going to walk, run or ride to better understand what it is like and raise money for WaterAid's work around the world so they can help everyone, everywhere access clean water, decent toilets and good hygiene.

We appreciate any support or donations to her fundraising page to help make a difference to those who walk too much!

Donations can be made directly to Georgina’s fundraising page, or you can register and join in the fun.

To learn more about WaterAid and what they do please visit www.wateraid.org.au.

Amendments to Water Regulation 2016

Amendments to the Water Regulation 2016 came into effect on Monday 22 July 2024. A departmental media release is available here.

These changes set out the operational detail for strengthened measurement requirements and deliver a regulatory framework that will improve the accuracy of water measurement.

The water regulation now:

applies to a broader range of measurement devices (meters, telemetry devices and water level stations)
requires repair or replacement of faulty meters within 30 business days (reduced from 60)
includes new record keeping and reporting requirements for water users (to be introduced later this year)
clearly states when to read a water meter, install and certify a new meter, certify an existing meter in Schedule 11
states that meters and water level stations need to be certified every 5 years
clearly identifies duly qualified persons (DQP) for the purpose of certifying measurement devices.

Many of the changes do not require immediate action by water users and will be implemented gradually over the next 6 months. Any metering process underway before 22 July 2024 will continue with no changes, for example revalidation and installation of new meters.

Updates have been made to relevant Business Queensland and RDMW webpages including:

Water metering | Business Queensland
Strengthened water measurement

A new web page providing targeted information for water users has also been published on the RWDMW website.

Global Microsoft Outages

The Drinking Water Supply Regulation team would like to draw your attention to the potential impacts the global Microsoft outages may have on water supply service equipment, particularly monitoring systems such as SCADA. Please ensure you manage all events and issues as per your Drinking Water Quality Management Plan.

Local Government Grant Opportunities

The 2024-28 Local Government Grants and Subsidies Program (LGGSP) aims to support councils to deliver priority infrastructure projects that meet the needs of their communities, create safe, liveable and prosperous regions and promote long-term council sustainability.

New funding of up to $115 million is available for projects which:

deliver priority essential services and infrastructure
align with local, regional and state priorities and infrastructure planning objectives
contribute to local and regional economic growth and employment
improve local disaster resilience and preparedness
support council long-term sustainability, including through improved project planning
encourage collaboration and resource sharing between councils
improve the liveability and amenity of regional communities through improved infrastructure and increased economic activity.

Up to $10 million of the total funding may be allocated to planning projects.

Applications for Stage 1 of project proposals (infrastructure) and planning applications close 9 August 2024 with announcement of outcomes in late September 2024.

Stage 2 business case will open for submissions in late September 2024 and close on 31 May 2025.

All funded projects for both stages must be completed by 30 June 2028, unless there are exceptional circumstances.

Eligible projects include essential services including critical infrastructure such as water supply, sewerage (including common effluent drainage schemes), waste infrastructure, waste management, roads and drainage, stormwater systems as well as multi-purpose community facilities, disaster command centres and works to protect existing essential infrastructure.

More info is available at https://www.localgovernment.qld.gov.au/for-councils/grants/current-programs/local-government-grants-and-subsidies-program

Safety by Design Partnership – Water and Energy – Family Violence Project Information Session

The Essential Services Commission has formed a partnership with key leaders in family violence and economic abuse to develop better practice guides for energy and water businesses to support consumers who are experiencing family violence.

The Guides, featuring the principles of Safety By Design will help businesses identify risks and harms in their systems and processes. Safety by Design is a proactive approach to preventing the potential for products and services to be weaponised.

The information session will introduce the project and the collaborative approach, as well as detail opportunities for participation, including TCA-facilitated workshops with lived experience and family violence experts.

Date: Thursday 8th August, 2024

Time: 1:00pm-2:15pm AEST

Registration: Click here to register for the information session

Water Supply Workshop, Mount Isa

The Water Supply Regulation team is conducting a Drinking Water Regulation workshop in Mount Isa on Thursday 29 August. The workshop will be an ‘in person’ only workshop.

The agenda includes presentations by Water Supply Regulation over a range of topics including drinking water incidents and actions, regulatory requirements, KPI reporting, water treatment and the Australian Drinking Water Guideline. Queensland Health and service providers will also deliver presentations about relevant operational issues.

NSW Water Directorate Annual Forum

The theme for the 2024 NSWWD Annual Forum is “Dive into Opportunity: Bridging the Skills Gap in our Water Workforce”.

Join the team to network and collaborate on workplace skills and challenges in the water workforce.

Date: Wednesday 11 September 2024 (commencing at 9:00am)

Location: The Aerial UTS Function Centre, Sydney

View the agenda here.

New Chair and members for Queensland Reconstruction Board

Katarina Carroll has been announced as the new board chairperson for QRA, Queensland’s lead agency for disaster recovery and resilience.

Having served as Commissioner for the Queensland Police Service (QPS) and Queensland Fire and Emergency Services (QFES), Ms Carroll brings to the role extensive experience in disaster management across multiple natural disaster events including the 2019 Queensland bushfires, the 2020 North Queensland Monsoon Flood and the 2022 Southern Queensland flooding.

Also joining Ms Carroll as new board appointments:

Dr Aysin Dedekorkut-Howes, Program Director of Urban and Environmental Planning at Griffith University and an expert in the fields of environmental and regional planning, urban/disaster resilience, climate adaptation and sustainability.
Ms Lynette McLaughlin who served for 22 years as Burdekin Shire Council Councillor and Mayor and has broad experience in governance, sustainability and disaster management.

The three-year appointments will go through to 31 August 2027.

Subscribe to Health Stream

Issue 112 of Health Stream – Water Research Australia's public health bulletin that provides information and analysis for water and health professionals – is now available for download. This edition features a review of opportunistic pathogens in drinking water distribution systems and recent papers on waterborne disease outbreaks, cryptosporidium and giardia, nitrates and cancer risk, and arsenic and cancer risk.

Non-members can access Health Stream for $120 per annum to get access to water-related health incidents and reports on recent research in water quality and public health.

Subscribe here.