Regulations and Approvals

The Trial is overseen by the Department of Health (DoH), Department of Water (DoW) and Department of Environment and Conservation (DEC). An Inter Agency Agreement was developed in March 2006 between the Regulators and the Water Corporation with the intention of:

Determining the approval requirements of each Regulator for the construction and operation the Trial
Defining the information that the Trial must produce in order to assess the ongoing operation of the Trial
Defining the information required to assess a future full scale groundwater replenishment scheme.

Each Department has contributed to design of the Trial, including the risks and specific issues the Trial must address, ongoing monitoring requirements and the treatment processes used.

As part of the process for establishing the water quality requirements to be met during the Trial, the Inter-Agency Working Group identified the environmental values that are relevant to the Leederville Aquifer in the vicinity of the Trial as drinking water, primary industry and industrial use. (see link below)

Together these Departments monitor the performance of the Trial through water quality reports as provided by independent laboratories and through ongoing meetings - monthly with Department of Health and quarterly with the full Interagency Working Group. The performance of the Trial will also be reported publicly on the Water Corporation website and in Trial Annual Reports.

Rigorous risk assessments and direction from our regulators guided the establishment of the Trial management framework. The framework takes the approach that identified risks are dealt with by operating procedures or treatment processes or both, relying on multiple safeguards to provide added protection.

Operating, maintaining and monitoring the Plant in accordance with this approach will demonstrate that recycled water can be produced to a quality suitable for recharge to groundwater supplies via groundwater replenishment.

Regulatory approvals gained to date

March 2008 - Department of Water approved risk assessment process, outcomes and comms strategy
April 2008 - Environmental Protection Authority advised Trial should be treated as “Not Assessed – Public Advice Given & Managed under Part V of the EP Act”
November 2008 - Department of Water approval to build wastewater treatment facility and in principle approval to operate
March 2008 - Department of Water approved risk assessment process and comms strategy
November 2008 - Department of Environment and Conservation Works Approval granted
December 2009 - Department of Environment and Conservation issued Licence to discharge
November 2010 - Department of Health approval to commence recharge based on commissioning data demonstrating water quality meets guidelines

Our regulators

Department of Health

The WA Department of Health (DoH) is responsible for public health in Western Australia and has directed that High Quality Water produced by the Trial must be suitable for drinking.

DoH requirements for approval include:

A risk management approach to be used to determine that the design and operational requirements of the Trial’s Advanced Water Recycling Plant meet the DoH requirements for water quality
The DoH’s approval of water quality data produced by the Advanced Water Recycling Plant before the Water Corporation can commence recharging high quality water into the Leederville Aquifer

The DoH has provided support for the Trial, based on consultation regarding the Trial’s scope, location, objectives and determined the risk to public health is low and has provided formal approval for the Water Corporation to commence construction of the Plant.

The DoH also reviewed all the commissioning validation information with respect to the water quality produced by the Advanced Water Recycling Plant to provide formal approval for the Water Corporation to commence recharge of groundwater with recycled water.

Department of Water

The DoW is responsible for managing the State’s water resources, including protection and management of drinking water sources and ensuring groundwater quality is sufficient to sustain the relevant environmental values. These values include aquatic ecosystems, primary industry, industrial use, drinking water, recreation and aesthetics, cultural and spiritual issues.

DoW requirements for approval include the requirement to carry out an Environmental Risk Assessment in accordance with the Australian Guidelines for Water Recycling: Managing Health and Environmental Risks to determine the design and operational requirements of the Advanced Water Recycling Plant meet the DoH requirements for water quality.

Department of Environment and Conservation

The DEC has primary responsibility for protecting and conserving Western Australia’s biodiversity and protecting, managing, assessing and regulating the use of the State’s natural resources.

The DEC formally regulates Trial activities under Part V of the Environmental Protection Act (1986) through a Works Approval to manage construction activities and a Licence to manage the operation of the Trial.

Environmental Protection Authority

The Water Corporation referred the Groundwater Replenishment Trial to the Environmental Protection Authority (EPA) for assessment under section 38 (Part IV) of the Environmental Protection Act 1986 in April 2008. Under this process the EPA considered the effect of the Groundwater Replenishment Trial on the surrounding environment.

The EPA determined that the Groundwater Replenishment Trial should be treated as "Not Assessed – Public Advice Given & Managed under Part V of the EP Act". The EPA also stated their expectation that the Water Corporation would:

Continue to consult and work with the DoH, DoW and DEC as part of the Inter-Agency Working Group
Continue to engage with stakeholders and the community
Obtain relevant approvals from the DoH and DEC under Part V
Not affect the Bush Forever site (303) that was adjacent to the Trial site

The documents submitted to the EPA for consideration describe:

The natural environment surrounding the Trial location, including an assessment of the groundwater system
An evaluation of the treatment technology and its ability to meet environmental and human health standards
How the Water Corporation is working with the Departments of Water, Health and Environment and Conservation to ensure that human health and the environmental values are protected through out the Trial
How the Water Corporation will inform the community of outcomes of the Trial and engage in discussions about the suitability of groundwater replenishment as a future water source.

Please note:Appendix 8 - Risk Assessment Report can be provided as part of an in-person briefing, available on request.

	Section 38 EPA Referral form

	Section 38 EPA Supplement

	Appendix 1 - Inter Agency Agreement

	Appendix 2 - Stakeholder Engagement Activities

	Appendix 3 - Site Evaluation Aquifer Assessment - In full, 9MB

	Appendix 4 - Stygofauna Advice

	Appendix 5 - Environmental Values

	Appendix 6 - Oceanica Report

	Appendix 7 - Dept of Health and Water Evaluation Letters

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