Coliban Water’s planned upgrade of the Kyneton Water Reclamation Plant will not be completed in time to prevent further illegal discharges of wastewater to the Campaspe River this year, downstream landowners fear.
Significant rain a fortnight ago has raised the plant’s storage lagoons to 96 per cent capacity and wet conditions have delayed upgrade works as part of the Kyneton Solutions Project, established in response to CW’s ongoing contamination of the river with excess wastewater from the plant.
Coliban Water’s managing director Damian Wells said the $15-17 million investment would deliver improved treatment processes and double storage capacity at the plant to provide greater protection to the river.
“Phase one works were completed in March this year and works are underway as part of phase two, which include the construction of an additional 200-megalitre storage lagoon at the plant,” Mr Wells said.
“We had planned this would be completed by December this year, however wet weather is impacting the works onsite and we now anticipate works to be completed early in the new year.
“This delay, together with the delayed start to the irrigation season, has put pressure on our plant operations and lagoon levels.”
Mr Wells said Coliban Water was currently releasing tertiary treated Class B recycled water to the Campaspe River, which was compliant with their Environmental Protection Authority Victoria licence conditions for water quality and river flow dilution.
But with dilution measured at Redesdale, 40 kilometres downstream of the release point from the plant, the river between Kyneton and Redesdale is being compromised by the Class B wastewater’s high nutrient levels.
“With more wet weather forecast and until phase two is completed early in the new year, we will need to release additional Class B recycled water to the Campaspe River,” Mr Wells said.
“This water will come from our lagoon system and while not tertiary treated, it is treated to Class B standard through our recently commissioned new Class C to B treatment plant. We are doing everything possible to remain compliant with our licence, notwithstanding our challenging operating conditions.”
From yesterday, Coliban Water began releasing four megalitres of Class B recycled water per day to the river and transporting eight truckloads of about 200 kilolitres of treated water per day to other treatment plants in order to create lagoon storage space at the Kyneton plant.
Landowner Kim Strawhorn said Coliban Water’s EPA licence was a licence to pollute, not a licence to protect the waterway.
“Coliban Water is presently increasing discharges to the Campaspe River and continues to blame the weather conditions,” Mr Strawhorn said.
“The reality is, this is simply typical of Kyneton’s climatic conditions.
“Trucking the waste out is totally unsustainable and storing a problem is not a solution.”
Landholder Huntly Barton agreed.
“The whole idea of storage is a waste of public money and continues to threaten the river,” he said.
“The volume of sewage coming down to the pump station from the local towns is a threat whenever there is average rainfall in the Kyneton district.
“They have to produce a higher quality of water that doesn’t endanger the environment, and that water can go back to the two reservoirs for human consumption as is the common practice all around the western world.”
