By Taryn Hunter and Calla Wahquist

Experts say Melbourne's Yarra River already contributes non-potable water to be purified for drinking (Image: Adam)

Ongoing drought means Melbourne, Australia, will be drinking recycled sewage within the next 15 years, according to a growing chorus of experts.

Despite the Victorian government spending billions of dollars on the North-South pipeline and the desalination plant, researchers say Melbourne will need to look for alternative sources of water within 10 years.

Dr Tony Priestly, a water researcher at the CSIRO, Australia’s leading scientific research institution, said “it’s inevitable frankly; it’s inevitable in lots of places. The logic of it is, to my mind, just inexorable… it’s the way to go.”

Drinking recycled sewage is highly controversial, as shown by splits in a parliamentary committee inquiring into Melbourne’s future water supply, with the president alleging that some members were afraid to tell voters to “go and drink shit.”

The head of the Environment and Natural Resources Committee, Labor MP John Pandazopoulos, said in June this year the committee had been “ready to recommend” the release of highly treated recycled water into Melbourne’s reservoirs, but a leading Opposition member would not put his name to the proposal so it was dropped.

Pandazopoulos alleged that the deputy leader of the National Party and Shadow Minister for Country Water Resources, Peter Walsh, said he did not want to tell the electorate that they had to “go and drink shit”.

Walsh denied the statement, and accused Pandazopoulos of being unprofessional in making the allegation.

However, Walsh said that he is opposed to the use of indirect potable recycled water in Melbourne.

“It is extremely inappropriate for him to discuss what went on in the confidential committee. I am bitterly disappointed in him,” he said.

The Brumby government has refused to consider using recycled water for drinking because of fears of a political backlash.

A majority of submissions to the parliamentary inquiry into Melbourne’s future water supply recommended the introduction of recycled water.

In its submission to the inquiry, environmental lobby group Environment Victoria strongly advocated a move towards recycled water sooner rather than later.

“It is critical for Melbourne’s water future that recycled water use play a bigger role,” said Leonie Duncan, spokesperson for the group.

“Not only does increased use of this recycled water have the potential to reduce the demand on existing water supplies and the rivers that feed our reservoirs, it also helps to reduce the problem of ocean outfall.”

Melbourne produces approximately 330 gigalitres of sewage per year, which already has the potential of adding an additional 100 gigalitres of drinkable water to the supply through treatment procedures currently available.

While scientists admit that the use of treated sewage as drinking water is one of the riskiest ways to obtain water, the CSIRO’s Tony Priestly said the technology is already there to ensure the public is safe.

The Pandazopoulos Committee presented its report on the water supply inquiry to Parliament on June 2. The report contained 48 recommendations, including water recycling targets of 50 per cent by 2012 and 70 per cent by 2015 and an increased use of recycled water for non-potable use.

Pandazopoulos said that the committee did not push the use of indirect potable recycled water because of the political difficulty involved.

“We didn’t want our report to be a debate about … drinking shit,” he said, or about a new dam, which was another option considered.

Pandazopoulos said that recycled water will be released into the water supply at a future stage, but didn’t think this was likely for the next 30 years.

“The politics will always be complicated. We need it to get a lot drier and have a much more informed public,” he said.

He added that based on rainfall projections, controversial projects such as the desalination plant and the north-south pipeline will be insufficient to provide for Melbourne’s water needs past 2036. He said indirect potable reuse was a probable future step.

Independent Gippsland MP and deputy Committee Chair, Craig Ingram, said that the Committee “failed” to provide leadership and direction on recycled water due to political sensitivities, and said it was the “best option” for ensuring Melbourne’s future water supply.

Ingram said the Committee “could not bring itself to counter the politics of recommending putting purified recycled water into Melbourne’s potable water supply”.

He said that the committee found that Melbourne Water customers were already drinking indirectly potable water, as Melbourne Water takes water from the Yarra River downstream of several direct wastewater discharges.

In contrast to Victoria, the Queensland State Government has authorised the release of indirectly potable recycled water into its water supply if the water storage level drops below 40 per cent. Melbourne’s water storages are currently at 25.9 per cent.

Water expert Dr Mark Lynch supports greater reuse of water but is concerned that environmental restrictions on trade waste are not sufficient to enable water to fit for human consumption.

Lynch, team Leader of Process Management and Optimisation at the Eastern Treatment Plant, said: “We reuse about 20 per cent… I’d love to see that go a lot higher.”

“I don’t think we’ll have any choice in the future,” he said.

While the current Victorian Government has a ‘no discussion policy’ when it comes to the implementation of indirect potable reuse, many see educating an apprehensive community on the benefits of recycled water as the next step in preparing for the future.

“It is time for the Brumby Government to lift their policy ban and allow us to make an informed decision about recycled water. We need to move the debate beyond the knee-jerk ‘yuck factor’ response,” Duncan said.

Priestly agreed that ignorance is one of the key factors in people’s reluctance to accept recycled water, with little information available for the community to make an informed choice.

He said that providing the facts in a scientific and straightforward manner has been shown to radically change opinion from that of fear to greater acceptance.

“The big issue is the community; getting the community to understand it and agree to it.

“It comes down to the fact of what people see: there’s the toilet, there’s the tap and they had very little idea of what happens in between.”

As rain fall levels continue to decline, those in the water industry know that discussion is crucial to ensure the acceptance and success of what may be our most sustainable source of water for future generations.

“You cannot take the risk of a city running out of water; the social and economic implications of that don’t even bear thinking about, you just can’t let it happen,” Priestly said.

Taryn Hunter and Calla Wahquist are journalism students at Monash University.

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