Water

Policy and programs

Bendigo - Water Recycling

City of Bendigo, Victoria

Australian Government Funding: $6,300,000

About the project

The project involved the construction of an enhanced treatment plant (reverse osmosis and microfiltration) at the Bendigo Water Reclamation site and a 14 kilometre pipeline to Spring Gully Reservoir. A total of 4300 megalitres a year of waste water is highly treated and transferred by pipeline to Spring Gully Reservoir. From the reservoir it is gravity fed through the rural channel system and is expected to be used as a substitute for environmental releases from Lake Eppalock into the Campaspe River.

Project outcomes and benefits

The project has helped to secure Bendigo's future water supply by reducing potable water use by 4300 megalitres a year. Potable water has been substituted with high quality recycled water for agricultural use in the rural channel system and for environmental flows in the Campaspe River. The project will ensure virtually 100 per cent of Bendigo's urban wastewater will be recycled. Greater community understanding of the potential uses and benefits of high quality recycled water, particularly in times of drought or increased water demand, has also been an outcome of this project.

Progress

This project is now complete.

Water Smart Australia projects are funded by the Australian Government's Water for the Future initiative.

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