eFlash 490
Date: 29-Jun-2021
In this edition: Queensland Government Announcements| Smarter Investment in Wastewater and Water Management forum: Book now!| Amendments to the Water Fluoridation Code of Practice| Charters Towers Regional Conference – Register Now| Women in Engineering Day| Position Available – Cairns Regional Council|
1. Queensland Government Announcements
1. Appointment of new Directors General
The Premier announced three new DG appointments on Friday:
- Department of Resources: Mike Kaiser
- Department of Regional Development, Manufacturing and Water: Graham Fraine
- Department of Tourism, Innovation and Sport: John Lee
Dr Graham Fraine
- Dr Fraine has 27 years’ experience in public policy, program development and service delivery across state and local government. He is currently Deputy Under Treasurer of Policy, Performance and Corporate with Queensland Treasury.
- Dr Fraine has previously held Deputy Director-General roles within the Queensland Government Departments of Premier and Cabinet and the Department of Transport and Main Roads.
- His strong passion for working in the public service is evident and he values the opportunity to make a difference to the lives of Queenslanders as well as to give back to the community. Dr Fraine is known for his strategic leadership that inspires a strong sense of purpose and his extensive experience across government will see him bring a broad whole-of-government perspective to the role.
- In 2018, Dr Fraine was awarded the Public Service Medal for outstanding public service to social science research and policy development in Queensland. Graham also holds a bachelor degree in psychology from James Cook University of North Queensland and a PhD from the Queensland University of Technology.
2. Resources and Other Legislation Amendment Bill(more details here and here) – has been through Presentation and First Reading last week and referred to the appropriate committee.
Amendments to the South East Queensland Water (Distribution and Retail Restructuring) Act
- The intent of these amendments is to extend some powers of certain staff of SEQ Distribution Retail Entities to support enforcement of water restrictions (part of the powers of an “authorised person” under the Local Government Act.)
- Water restriction investigation and enforcement provisions - appointed water restriction officers can enter private and commercial property under certain circumstances (to gather information and evidence of a water restriction contravention and use this to undertake enforcement action).
Amendments to the Water Supply (Safety and Reliability) Act
- Acknowledging the risk of including detailed cybersecurity information in key public documents (such as Drinking Water Quality Management Plans), the amendments remove the current requirement for water service providers to make publicly available highly sensitive cyber security information and reporting metrics.
3. State Budget, new Building our Regions allocation for Water and Sewerage
The Queensland Government will support regional councils to improve water supply and security across the state by committing $70 million to Round 6 of Building our Regions funding in the State Budget, jointly administered by the Department of Regional Development, Manufacturing and Water.
Regional councils will be able to bid for $70 million in funding over three years (10+30+30) to improve their water and sewerage systems.
Eligibility and application guidelines will be provided as they are made available.
4. QCA Investigation into Seqwater bulk prices
The review is to recommend bulk water prices to apply from 1/7/22 to 30/6/26. Submissions must be lodged by 13 August, with a further opportunity to lodge after the release of the draft report, expected in December 2021.
2. Smarter Investment in Wastewater and Water Management Forum: Book Now!
The Queensland Government is hosting a forum in conjunction with the Australian Water Association North Queensland Regional Conference. The Smarter investment in wastewater and water management - sharing lessons from the Reef catchment and the south east Queensland region forumis on Wednesday 28 July.
The half-day interactive forum, organised in partnership with qldwater and the Local Government Association of Queensland, will share insights and lessons learnt in managing water and wastewater for smarter investment across the Reef catchment and improved water quality outcomes for the Great Barrier Reef.
This is a critical opportunity for senior water and water treatment asset managers to share and gain valuable insights on catchment-wide approaches and capacity building opportunities for urban water and water management. For further details and registration, please visit https://ipweaq.eventsair.com/qwd-urban-water-forum-2021/
3. Amendments to the Water Fluoridation Code of Practice
The Department of Health is in the process of amending the Code of Practice with changes summarised as follows:
- New simplified layout
- Amendments to encompass the changes introduced by theWater Fluoridation Regulations 2020 – the most notable change being the requirement for batch analysis certificates (required for each batch of fluoride prior to any of the batch being added to a water supply) to be issued by an Australian laboratory, accredited by the National Association of Testing Authorities Australia (NATA).
- Updates to referenced documents
- Replacing copies of the approved forms (e.g. quarterly reporting, notice of non-operation) with a URL weblink
Feedback is required by 23 July, please contact dcameron@qldwater.com.au if you would like copies of the materials to review. We will be forwarding directly to all currently fluoridating councils.
4. Charters Towers Regional Conference – Register Now
Only three weeks left to registerto attendthe Charters Towers Conference being held on the 21st and 22nd July. You better hurry and register now to not miss out on the complimentary registrations for qldwater members.
The event theme will be focused on ‘Water Quality Challenges in Northern Queensland’.
There will be a site tour taking place on Wednesday 21st July from 2:30pm to 4:30pm for those who would like to visit the Weir Pump Station and the Water Treatment Plant followed by an optional two course dinner for those who would like to join us.
Places are limited for the site tour due to the number of bus seats available so please register as soon as possible if you are planning to attend to secure your spot.
As an additional incentive to attend the Charters Towers Conference, you have the opportunity in Charters Towers to be part of a new idea based on sharing stories through photos and videos.
Before you get scared off – it’s not about you, it’s about the interesting kit you operate, challenges you’ve faced and how you have innovated to address them. For the event, you are invited to bring along your best example of something interesting. To find out more, click here.
The program is available on the event website.
There will be a meeting for the Northern Queensland Alliance participants in the morning of the 21st before the site tour.
There are still sponsorship opportunities still available, please contact Naomi
(ncarragher@qldwater.com.au) if you are interested in sponsoring this event.
Thank you to our confirmed sponsors GanDen our dinner sponsor, Aquatec Maxcon, Royce Water Technologies and Aqualyng ICES our Gold Sponsors and McBerns & Taggle our Silver Sponsors.
5. Women in Engineering Day
Today is the International Women in Engineering Day (INWED), a day where we celebrate the work and achievements of female engineers in shaping the world and making our planet a better, safer, more innovative and exciting place to be.
We are fortunate to work with some amazing women engineers in the urban water and sewerage industry, and today we would like to acknowledge their hard work and dedication to provide safe, secure and sustainable water to all Queensland communities.
6. Position Available –Cairns Regional Council
Engineer Development – CW442 (Fixed-Term Full-Time until 30 August 2023)
Cairns Regional Council is currently seeking an Engineer Development to join our Water & Resource Recovery Department.
Primary Objective of the position:
- Provision of engineering skills and expertise in the planning, design and development assessment of water, wastewater and solid waste infrastructure.
To be successful in this role you must have:
- Bachelor of Engineering in Civil Engineering or relevant discipline, with demonstrated experience specific to the water, wastewater, and solid waste environment.
- Current Queensland Driver’s Licence.
- Demonstrated experience in the design of water, wastewater and/or solid waste infrastructure or similar.
- Well-developed written communication skills with demonstrated ability to write technical reports, correspondence and memorandums.
- Sound knowledge of relevant legislation and Australian Standards.
For a full listing of the Key Duties & Responsibilities and full Selection Criteria please ensure you obtain a copy of the information kit and how to apply by visiting the Cairns Regional Council website, scrolling to the Position Description area, then clicking on "Open" to download the attachment.
Enquiries: Cairns Regional Council Recruitment Team
Ph: (07) 4044 3310
Applications Close: Sunday, 11 July 2021