The 2010 Metropolitan Water Plan will help secure Sydney's water supply
The NSW Office of Water's newly released 2010 Metropolitan Water Plan ensures greater Sydney will have a secure water supply until at least 2025.
NSW Minister for Water Phil Costa said the updated plan built on the success of the 2006 Metropolitan Water Plan, which was developed during the worst drought in 100 years.
'Over the past four years, we have built a robust water supply for the people and environment of Sydney, the Illawarra and the Blue Mountains,' Minister Costa said.
'The NSW Government's significant and targeted investment in dams, recycling, desalination and water efficiency [has] secured Sydney's water supply in the face of severe drought, and has ensured our water supplies will remain secure well into the future.'
Key elements of the 2010 Metropolitan Water Plan include:
- continued investment in maintaining and upgrading Sydney's network of dams, which store more than 2,600 billion litres of water, to ensure they can continue to supply the majority of Sydney's drinking water
- continued investment in wastewater recycling, including major schemes at Hoxton Park, Rouse Hill and Rosehill-Camellia, to boost recycled water volumes to 70 billion litres of water a year, or 12 per cent of our water needs, by 2015
- continued reduction of 'red tape' and encouraging private investment in stormwater harvesting and sewer mining to further boost water recycling
- operation of the award-winning wind-powered Sydney desalination plant at full capacity when the total dam storage level is below 70 per cent, to continue to supply Sydney Water's area of operations until total storage reaches 80 per cent
- continued investment in water efficiency programs, including rebates and business programs, and trialling of new water efficient technology such as smart metering to save 145 billion litres of water a year, or 24 per cent of Sydney's water needs, by 2015
- maintaining Water Wise Rules and education programs to reinforce water efficient behaviours over the long term and to continue saving 19 billion litres of water a year
- continued investment in Sydney's world-class active leak detection and repair program to sustain reduced rates of leaks and breaks
- completion of a detailed analysis of environmental flow requirements to develop a new environmental flow regime from Warragamba Dam to the Hawkesbury-Nepean River.
With this plan, greater Sydney will continue to secure 'Water 4 Life' through a winning formula of dams, desalination, recycling and water efficiency to meet the needs of a growing city and its rivers for at least the next 15 years.