Muswellbrook Shire Council have announced that an innovative upgrade of their Recycled Water Treatment Works (RWTW) will see new technology used to improve the facility.

The former Sewage Treatment Plant started operating in the early 1930s to treat sewage received from the town of Muswellbrook and was upgraded in the 1960’s. In 2014 Council endorsed locating the new RWTW on the same property, immediately to the south of the existing STP. This was because Council could use existing infrastructure and avoid constructing additional pipelines to deliver sewage to an alternative location, significantly reducing the overall cost of the new RWTW.

However a further upgrade is now needed for the facility, as it was recently deemed to be no longer sustainable for the growing Muswellbrook population in 2017.

As part of a review of the facility, the community consultation period for a new Recycle Water Treatment Works (RWTW) found that the community would like to see noise and odour control, use of best technology and high quality treated water as key features of the upgrade, with retention of a portion of the ponds as a bird sanctuary.

Muswellbrook Shire new RWTW will utilise an Intermittent Decanted Extended Aeration (IDEA) system and will have updated technology, odour control and improved recycled water quality. It is proposed to start operating in approximately two years and once the upgrade is completed, the current STP will be decommissioned.

Using recycled water

Muswellbrook Shire Council has long supported the use of recycled water, encouraging local companies to bid for recycled water contracts via a tender process.

The provision of recycled water meets the requirements of the Australian Guidelines for Recycled Water 2006 and the recycled water guidance document for Recycled Water Management Systems 2015.

Recycled water cannot yet be used for drinking water, however it is currently being 100 per cent used for non-drinking purposes by agreement with Muswellbrook Golf Club and HVEC/BHP Billiton Mt Arthur Mine where its uses include irrigation, coal preparation and dust suppression.

This also means that, except during some extreme rain / wet weather events, there will continue to be no discharge to rivers or streams from the new RWTW.

Treated and disinfected recycled water is pumped from the treatment plant on Skellatar Stock Route to customers via two reuse pumping mains, one along Thomas Mitchell Drive and the other along Skellatar Stock Route and Rutherford Road.

What is recycled water used for?

Recycled water can be used for a range of purposes, on the condition the water has been treated prior to use. These include:

• Urban and municipal environments
• Households, golf courses and recreational parks
• Industry
• Washing and cooling in power stations and mills
• Agriculture
• Horticulture, forestry, pasture, flowers, viticulture and sugar cane
• Fire fighting
• Groundwater recharge
• Municipal landscapes
• Dual-pipe urban uses
• Environmental flows and wetlands
• Higher quality recycled water
• Odour and noise control
• The new facility will be located further away from residential areas
• It will cater for projected population, industrial and commercial growth in Muswellbrook to the year 2046.

Key features of the Recycle Water Treatment Works include:

• Higher quality recycled water
• Odour and noise control
• The new facility will be located further away from residential areas
• It will cater for projected population, industrial and commercial growth in Muswellbrook to the year 2046.