SA’s water whizzes go toe to toe for top drop

South Australia’s drinking water ‘mixologists’ will put their drop to the ultimate test when water operators from several of SA Water’s regional and metropolitan treatment plants battle it out next week in the hope of winning ‘best tasting tap water in South Australia’.

The annual competition run by the Water Industry Operators Association of Australia (WIOA) will be held virtually on Tuesday, with a judging panel of water industry experts assessing samples on colour, clarity, odour and ‘mouthfeel’ during blind taste tests.

SA Water’s Water Production Engineer Liam Tothill said crowd favourites Morgan and Woolpunda are again among the 2021 entries, and will be joined by high-quality samples from SA’s first seawater desalination plant at Penneshaw and competition first-timer, Leigh Creek.

“This year has it all – we’ve got treated drinking water from a range of sources including catchment and surface water stored in our reservoirs, the River Murray, groundwater and seawater,” Liam said.

“Depending on the source and system, each water has a different treatment process which ensures it’s safe and clean before being supplied to customers.

“Credit where credit’s due, our Morgan and Woolpunda chloraminated drinking waters have been popular among the judges in recent years with a few wins between them, and there’s no doubt they’ll be out to prove the Riverland has the state’s top drop.”

Next week's competition will see 20 entries vying for top drop, including samples from Mount Pleasant, Swan Reach and Waikerie, as well as facilities in Happy Valley, Hope Valley, Anstey Hill and Barossa.

WIOA Chief Operations Officer Craig Mathisen said the competition creates a friendly rivalry between the water operators, as well as the opportunity to shine a light on their vital role in public health.

“The competition recognises and acknowledge the individuals and organisations that are stepping up and rising to the challenges of a global pandemic to make sure their communities are supplied with high-quality, safe drinking water every day,” Craig said.

“We want to use the competition to let people know the great work that is going on in local communities around our country and help shape and secure Australia’s water future.”

The winning water will compete for the Australian title in early 2022 at an event hosted by TasWater, who recently took out the prestigious international award. The winner of the national competition will then go on to represent Australia in the international competition held in the United States in February.

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