Salting it away for non-rainy day

Australian
Thursday 19/4/2007 Page: 2

AUSTRALIA'S driest capital yesterday officially opened the nation's first desalination plant, as the West Australian Government committed hundreds of millions of dollars to building at least one more in the near future. Premier Alan Carpenter said the "rainfall-independent" water supply would provide 17 per cent of Perth's needs, 144 million litres of drinking water each day.

Although the other states were bickering over options to address their growing water crises, Mr Carpenter said he was certain Western Australia would build more desalination plants in the near future. "There's absolutely no doubt in my mind that we will have another desalination plant, at least of this scale, on the coast north or south of Perth in the not too distant future, and in the longer term we will have several," Mr Carpenter said at the opening of the $387 million Kwinana plant, 40km south of Perth.

The Government was also in the process of assessing the environmental impact of tapping the South-West Yarragadee aquifer. Water Corporation chief executive Jim Gill has warned the Government needed to make a decision on Yarragadee by the end of next month to ensure severe shortages were not experienced in 2009.

Questioned on the cost of water from the desalination plant, Mr Carpenter said West Australians had to get used to the fact the days of cheap water were over. "The days when we were getting water for virtually nothing from dams overflowing from rainfall and run-off would appear to be over," he said. "Every other option is considerably more expensive. Water prices are going to continue to rise." He said water from dams cost about 16c per kilolitre compared with about $1.15 per kilolitre for desalinated water.

The Kwinana desalination plant is the third biggest in the world behind two massive plants in Israel and the United Arab Emirates. It is the largest desalination plant in the world to be powered by renewable energy the plant buys its power from the Emu Downs Wind Farm 245km north of Perth.

Federal Water Resources Minister Malcolm Turnbull was also spruiking water plans in Perth yesterday. Mr Turnbull announced $6.19 million in funding for a water-sensitive urbandevelopment project slated to save two billion litres of water a year. The development will include 15,000 new housing lots southeast of Perth and will use stormwater capture and groundwater for non-drinking purposes such as gardens, toilets and washing machines.

Comparing the project to Perth's new desalination plant, Mr Turnbull said it was low energy, low-cost and sustainable.