Proactive environmental leadership
Proactive environmental leadership
As a leader in environmental management, and by partnering with our stakeholders, customers and community, we are taking action to adapt to climate change, and finding ways to reduce our greenhouse gas emissions. We make decisions that reduce waste and grow opportunities to reuse resources and by-products of our production processes to create environmental benefits.
The Zero Cost Energy Future initiative earned multiple awards in 2022-23. It was presented with the Consult Australia Awards for Excellence in the Superior Sustainability category, the Premier’s Climate Change Council South Australia Climate Leaders Awards in the climate change category, the Engineers Australia Excellence Awards South Australia as a project award, and the Australian Institute of Energy South Australia awards as the South Australian Energy Project of the Year.
To promote sustainability and responsible practices, in 2022-23 we:
- developed a circular economy approach to guide how we effectively integrate circular practices throughout our operations
- completed a circular economy procurement project, which involved a comprehensive review of our procurement practices. As a result, we developed a specialised tool to help our people identify products with recycled content suitable for use by our business
- reused demolition materials for fill projects and improved sorting and separation processes for recycling
- incorporated recycled aggregates for pipe embedment, reducing our reliance on raw materials. For instance, we used 10 mm and 14 mm recycled aggregates instead of raw materials for pipe embedment in the Tea Tree Gully Sustainable Sewers project.
These achievements are part of our commitment to introducing circular economy into our business for a more sustainable future.
In July 2022, we achieved a record-breaking level of 3,099 megawatt hours of renewable energy generation from biogas at Bolivar Wastewater Treatment Plant. This surpassed our yearly average of 2,800 megawatt hours and resulted in 112 per cent energy sufficiency for the month, with excess green energy exported to the grid. Bolivar Wastewater Treatment Plant had an average energy self-sufficiency rate of 95 per cent in 2022-23.
In 2022-23, our Research team began work to investigate the use of low-cost remote sensors to help measure water quality challenges and other impacts following bushfires. The research will inform future bushfire recovery efforts. In November 2022 we completed a 3-year project, delivered by the University of New South Wales, which conducted research to improve our understanding of the impact of fires on native habitat. The outcomes of this research are now being used to improve prescribed burning methods to reduce the risk of bushfires.
In 2022-23 we restored a 24-hectare site at our Millbrook Reservoir Reserve into a thriving open grassy woodland habitat with 82 native plant species and more than 2.2 million native grasses.
The restoration project was recognised with the Environmental Stewardship Award at the 2023 Parks and Leisure Australia South Australia Awards of Excellence.
We made significant progress in reconstructing Eyre Peninsula Blue Gum Woodland and Sheoak Grassy Woodland at Tod Reservoir Reserve on the lower Eyre Peninsula. These on-ground native vegetation offsets cover 12 hectares and biodiversity gains are tracking above target.
Two aerial operations were carried out to remove feral deer and goats from the Mount Bold and Scott Creek area, in collaboration with Landscapes South Australia Hills and Fleurieu, the Department for Environment and Water, and Forestry South Australia. The removal of these animals has a crucial role in safeguarding the region’s biodiversity and facilitating the recovery of vegetation affected by the Cherry Gardens bushfire. The operation in November removed 286 deer and 61 goats, and in June, 375 deer and 12 goats were removed.
As part of an extensive fauna monitoring program, we partnered with a wildlife organisation to remove feral cats from land around Middle River Reservoir on Kangaroo Island, helping protect the endangered southern brown bandicoots and the critically-endangered Kangaroo Island dunnart.
This year we reached an in-principal agreement with Willunga Basin Water to enter a new long-term contract through to 2052 for the supply of climate-independent recycled water to around 240 irrigators across the McLaren Vale region, providing water security to Willunga Basin Water customers. Willunga Basin Water supplies about 6,000 megalitres a year of recycled water, which is sourced from and treated at our Aldinga and Christies Beach wastewater treatment plants.
Major faults
Polkinghorns Rd
Arthurton
- 18/06/2020
Water Supply On
- 18/06/2020 03:05 PM - We are attending to an incident in Arthurton with no interruption to the water supply. The safety of our crews and customers comes first, and we always aim to minimise inconvenience by restoring services as quickly as we can. Reference Number WO: 07505663.
- See all major faults
Scheduled works
Spruance Rd
Elizabeth East
- 11/06/2021
Temporary Supply Interruption
- Estimated start time and water supply off: 15/06/2021 09:00 AM
Estimated restore time and water supply back on: 15/06/2021 04:00 PM
We’re improving your services and undertaking maintenance work in Elizabeth East. Sometimes our crews need to temporarily interrupt the water supply to our customers and/or manage traffic while they are working. Temporary traffic management may remain in place until reinstatement of the impacted road is complete. We always aim to minimise inconvenience by restoring services as safely and quickly as we can. - See all scheduled works
