To reflect the fact that water flows from the Rosewood Reservoir Pumping Station in Orange NSW are highly variable, a new hypochlorite dosing system was installed.

Previously, a “fixed rate” injection of hypochlorite into the outlet of the 20 ML Reservoir, meant that residuals at
the reticulation extents were also variable. The Orange City Council operating staff know the usual flow patterns,
so this “fixed rate” can be altered for week days, holidays, weekends etc. Orange City Council were also very aware of the need to protect their staff against accidental exposure to hypochlorite, therefore any new system must be designed with clear OH&S advantages.

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Government Skills Australia has wasted no time in responding to issues raised by the water industry about
changes needed to the Water Training Package. The updated Water Training Package NWP07 was endorsed at the end of 2007 and is now available for delivery. Registered Training Organisations can now apply to change their scope from NWP01 to allow delivery of the new qualifications.

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Colour is emerging as a critical quality parameter of trade waste which needs to be managed by Water Authorities,
but is currently not well understood. Colour can present aesthetic or technical barriers to water reuse, interfere
with treatment processes, and contribute to the appearance of plumes when outfall effluent discharges mix into
receiving water bodies.

This paper provides a discussion on how colour is defined, how it can be measured, and what colour is deemed
acceptable for potable water supply, recycled water supply, and trade waste discharges. Common laboratory tests
for colour discussed in this paper are Apparent Colour, True Colour, Adams-Nickerson Colour, ADMI Colour, and
Biodegradable Colour.

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A number of water SEQ Service Providers are in the process of implementing Leakage and Pressure Management Projects. The driver behind such work is the severe drought conditions facing the region and subsequent emergency legislative changes. The individual projects fall within the scope of the South-East Queensland Regional Water Leakage and  Pressure Management Project

MWH has been assisting a number of Service Provider’s with the implementation of Leakage and Pressure Management  (L&PM). Providing local clients with international experience and resourcing to ensure that the projects have the  best opportunity to succeed. In particular, providing expertise and assistance in field data collection, network  modelling and system design, customer and other stakeholder liaison, system operational management, project  management design, construction management, commissioning and post implementation performance assessment.

The approaches adopted for the various commissions have been jointly developed with clients with consideration
given to the level of risk clients are willing to carry, time constraints, available funding, data quality and
level of direct participation by clients. The modelling package used for all the commissions undertaken is the
H2OMap modelling suite.

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Licola is a small town in the high country of Gippsland. In 1969 the then derelict logging town was purchased by
the Lions Club of Victoria, and restored to provide a high country experience for children of all backgrounds.
In Summer 2006-07 the community was under siege by bushfires which passed right through the town, burning trees and bushes within meters of buildings and homes. The fires caused extensive damage to the towns water distribution system, melting pipes both above and below ground.

While the dedicated team of Lions volunteers set about  rebuilding the distribution system, another problem was brewing. Loss of ground cover and deposits of ash in the  catchment area sent the historically pristine Macalister River to a dirty muddy creek, with worse still to come.  The Lions Club approached Gippsland Water for assistance in treating the water to supply the camp and town.  Chemical dosing options were assessed, and the town swimming pool was modified and utilised as an emergency  clarifier, with some generous assistance from water industry suppliers the system was a success.

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Sewage Infrastructure Corrosion Costs about $1.1 Billion / Year . This cost translates to about $50.00/ person /
year. Recent advancements in microbial control use what nature has evolved , to remove biofilm and biofilm sediment complexes from the sewer pipes. This removes the cause of sewage odour generation and thus infrastructure corrosion.

Any reduction in odorous sulfides arriving at the sewage treatment plant will reduce the oxygen demand required to convert sulfides to sulfates. In the case of extended aeration plants, this will save energy and thus greenhouse
gas emissions. In addition, removing biofilm and sediments from the sewer pipes, will improve their hydraulic
efficiency, reduce pumping energy and thus greenhouse gas emissions.

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The technologies used to measure the level in pumping stations have been traditionally hydrostatic pressure,
ultrasonic, or simply switching (on/off) sensors. You may also add to these radar, which is fast becoming a
preferred solution to many water and wastewater authorities. With the availability of these varied options which
one is best?

The selection of the level sensor for best performance is determined by many factors including; range, type of
product to be measured, ambient and process conditions, plus mounting position. Each technology has features that will be suited (or may be not suited) to the final application.

It is crucial to have an understanding of the principle of operation of these styles of measurement in conjunction
with good installation and commissioning by trained personnel. With all factors taken into consideration a
reliable level sensor (or sensors) can be installed every time.

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Since installing the first pressure sewer system (PSS) in Australia at Tooradin, Warneet and Cannons Creek,
Melbourne Water Retailer South East Water has discovered the enormous benefits of using pressure sewer technology within its Backlog Sewerage Projects.

The benefits are a result of being able to construct sewer mains in road reserves constructed predominantly by
boring. This results in significant reduction in disturbance to the environmental and local community during the
project delivery.

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The objective of this project was to obtain improved odour control, whilst minimising OH&S issues and energy
consumption. A quick desktop investigation into possible options was conducted, and one product has been trialled
with favourable results. The trial involved the use of a patented organic additive which increases cellular
metabolism for micro organisms that occur naturally in effluent treatment systems.

The indicators to be used for the performance of the trial were ammonia, sulphide, sulphate levels, odour complaints and site power consumption before and after introduction of the product and usual observation.

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We have prepared this presentation using illustrations from project work previously undertaken by us to provide you with an informative outcome about the alternate methods of disinfection. We are keen to convey to you examples of their use so that you may give them due consideration in future plant design.

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Drought conditions in Australia have resulted in an increased interest in reverse osmosis systems used to
desalinate brackish and/or seawater and produce water for drinking and other municipal/community use.

In 2003, Contiki Resorts who at the time operated the Great Keppel Island Resort identified that the water quality
for the island resort guests was not within the guidelines for the drinking water standards. Tests on the island
bores had showed high TDS (well above 2500 us/cm) which was increasing rapidly indicating that the aquifer was
being contaminated by sea water. After considering a number of options the resort management concluded that
desalination of sea water was the only sustainable solution for the island’s growing drinking water requirements.
OSMOFLO® responded to these requirements by designing, constructing and installing a desalination plant capable of producing 300,000 Litre per day.

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Kawana STP is located on the Sunshine Coast. This plant was originally commissioned in 1981 with two previous
upgrades before the most recent one in June 2005. Included in this recent upgrade were: new inlet facilities;
retrofitting one of two IDAL tanks into a continuous flow bioreactor with the provisions of four secondary
clarifiers; the addition of two gravity drainage decks; and the modification of the existing secondary
sedimentation tanks for the purpose of new contact tanks and chlorine disinfection.

This paper focuses on selected upgrade experiences associated with the commissioning in 2005 as well as the
plant’s performance in the first two years of operation after this upgrade.

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Wide Bay Water Corporation (WBWC) has come up with a winning solution for the dispersal of their wastewater by
recycling it onto a timber plantation. Currently 300,000 trees have been planted (approximately 220 hectares) with expansion to 1 million trees by 2010. A centrally controlled automated drip irrigation system using Class B
effluent water from Hervey Bay’s two sewage treatment plants irrigates the timber plantations.

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Realising that at least for now, very few of you fluoridate your water supplies, but with the advent of compulsory fluoridation, I thought that I may give you some small insight into Dalby’s Fluoridation System and the pathway to achieve certification. Fluoridation is a contentious issue and I have no personal opinion for or against, only that if we must fluoridate, lets do it right!

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Within Queensland, effluent discharge requirements from wastewater treatment plants are some of the most stringent in Australia. Typically, effluent quality requirements are 5 mg/L Total Nitrogen and less than 1 mg/L Total Phosphorus. To meet these limits, the Biological Nutrient Reduction (BNR) process incorporating biological
nitrogen and phosphorus reduction is becoming the mandatory process for new and upgraded larger sewage treatment plants.

A number of plants have demonstrated outstanding performance in their ability to reliably meet these limits. However, an equally large number of plants are unable to meet these limits and either fail to meet their
discharge criteria or require extensive supplementary chemical dosing. Often, it is left to the plant operator
to identify and rectify plant operation. Many factors can contribute to failure of the biological nitrogen and
phosphorus reduction processes and a number of these are presented.

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We started a trial of a natural chemical called Byo-Gon that could help LOGAN CITY COUNCIL with the problems with high Ammonia in the inflow from the by-product of company waste. In turn we have seen a reduction in total N and some Scum reduction. Byo-Gon was proposed as a means of improving the growth of the micro-organisms. Which we have seen some signs first hand under the microscope.

The improvements in the growth of numbers of miro-organisms eg: Stalk Ciliate, Rotifers and less filamentous. Some improvement with the anaerobic bacteria, Dosing at a higher rate we did see improvements on scum removal on one of the Bioreactors. This was dosing at 42L of Byo-Gon to 700L of recycled water. Now we dose concentrated Byo-Gon.

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The Mudgeeraba WPP was the original Water Purification Plant for the Gold Coast. In its currently state it is capable of treating between 35 and 110 ML/day.

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Gold Coast Water, in conjunction with UQ have developed a suite of modelling tools for dynamic simulation of their wastewater treatment plants. One end-application of these models is that they can be used to support operators as a training tool. It is not possible for operators to use the modelling software directly since is it orientated towards construction and solution of the model, whereas an operator interface is designed towards process control and monitoring. One option is to develop the model, and use a completely independent interface developed using application programming interfaces (APIs). In this way, key outputs and controls can be accessed and displayed in a similar manner to that which is displayed on a plants SCADA system, and much of the models complexity is hidden, providing a realistic, but accessible simulator, suitable for operators to use.

In this paper, we address interfacing of a Gold Coast Treatment Plant, which has classically been difficult to
operate, due to highly variable loading, strict license limits and a substantial contribution from industrial
sources. The complex underlying model was developed in the simulation package WEST, and the interface developed using Visual Basic. Key design elements of the interface mimic the actual Citect interface and include dynamic aerator control, scalable dynamic trending and stop and start buttons. Different input scenarios can be chosen to represent unusual operational conditions.

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A joint initiative between the Queensland Government and Gold Coast City Council, construction is being delivered
by the GCD Alliance ─ a group of companies appointed to deliver all three pieces of infrastructure (desalination
plant, marine intake and outlet tunnels and a pipeline connection into the water grid). The alliance comprises John
Holland Group, Veolia Water Australia, Sinclair Knight Merz and Cardno.

When operational, the desalination plant will feed 125ML/day of fresh water into the South East Queensland Water
Grid which will provide about 20 per cent of the region’s daily water needs. More importantly, it will provide a
water source that is not reliant on rainfall.

The desalination plant is a vital part of the Queensland Government’s new $9 billion South East Queensland Water
Grid and the Gold Coast City Council’s Waterfutures Strategy to drought proof south-east Queensland.

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Trial and subsequent introduction of Polyaluminum Chlorhydrate as a replacement primary coagulant for liquid Alum Sulphate in the potable water treatment process at the Glenmore Water Treatment Plant. Glenmore Water Treatment Plant is managed and operated by the Rockhampton Regional Council Water Group, which is located in Rockhampton on the Tropic of Capricorn in Central Queensland Australia.

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