Water Workforce Toolbox

Chemicals of Concern

Contaminants of emerging concern are an increasing issue for the local government water sector as community and regulator expectations increase and the ability to detect trace chemicals improves.

Costs of dealing with contaminant issues will increase but can be mitigated through joint action and collaboration in national and international initiatives for research, policy and advocacy. In 2019, the qldwater Sewage and Water Environmental Advisory Panel recommended the formation of a Consortium to influence state and national policy, research and communications to lead future discussions about contaminants affecting Queensland Water and Sewerage Service Providers, leading to the formation of the qldwater Consortium on or Research and Advocacy on Contaminants (qCRAC).

Follow this link for a wealth of resources relating to Chemicals of Concern.

Recycled Water

Analysis of current recycled water policy and regulatory framework in Queensland

Prepared by Dr Lynne Powell, this report contains a summary of the current regulatory and policy framework for recycled water from municipal sewage treatment plants in Queensland and includes findings from interviews with water service providers that operate recycled water.

Aligning Definitions of Recycled Water in Queensland

Prepared by the Sewerage and Water Environmental Advisory Panel (SWEAP) this discussion paper outlines regulation of recycled water in Queensland and recommends minor clarifications to often overlapping regulatory requirements for Water and Sewerage Service Providers (WSPs). This alignment is needed both to improve management and reporting and to increase the likelihood of safe water recycling. It is also the first step towards seeking broader agreement on riskmanagement practices (to be considered in a future paper). Highlighted terms in this paper are defined in the Glossary in Section 7.

Regulation of recycled water produced by WSPs is managed under three State Acts and five regulatory reporting frameworks under a raft of State and Commonwealth legislation. The regulatory instruments include multiple definitions of recycled water and the uses that it can be put to. The lack of consistency appears semantic rather than intentional, but still impedes management, use and particularly, accurate measurement and reporting of recycled water. A streamlined approach would facilitate greater safe recycling of urban water in Queensland.

The diverse existing definitions have several elements in common. This discussion paper proposes an overarching definition using a modified version of the Australian Guidelines for Water Recycling (AGWR) definition. It is proposed that all regulatory instruments relevant to WSPs can be encompassed if recycled water is defined as:

“water generated from sewage, greywater or stormwater systems and treated to a standard that is appropriate for its intended use rather than discharge to land or water.”

The modification (in bold) explicitly aligns the definition with Queensland Acts and distinguishes ‘discharge’ from a beneficial intended use.

The inconsistencies in definitions relevant to Queensland WSPs can be overcome without legislative change through adherence to the above interpretations and agreement on a common classification for intended uses as proposed in the following schema. Following this agreement, the next step should be to provide further clarification on fit-for-purpose risk management and reporting of recycled water for different uses that is consistent with all current legislation and guidance.

Trade Waste

Sample Documents on Trade Waste