Our desalination project will not only be Australia’s largest – it will also be one of the world’s greenest.

The Government and AquaSure have made a strong commitment to environmental management.

The project’s key environmental elements are:

• innovative design that integrates the plant into the coastal landscape through low profile buildings, dune creation and coastal habitat restoration
• limited carbon footprint by offsetting operational power with renewable energy certificates
• protecting the marine, coastal and estuarine environment by tunnelling under the coast and seabed and adopting appropriate intake and outlet structure design
• protecting ecological values near the desalination plant and pipeline and power supply.

The Government undertook a thorough Environment Effects Statement (EES) to consider potential impacts and measures to minimise effects on the environment and local community.

Through the EES process, about 220 Performance Requirements were developed and placed in the contract with AquaSure. These requirements guide project design and environmental management during construction and operation.

The project has met legislative requirements with numerous approvals obtained through State and Federal Governments.

The Victorian Environment Protection Authority will monitor the desalination plant’s construction and ongoing operation to ensure there is no long-term impact on the environment.

In addition, AquaSure’s Environmental Management System and Environmental Management Plan ensure the Performance Requirements for design, construction and operation activities are planned and performed so that environmental effects are either avoided or minimised.

The Government and AquaSure have appointed an Independent Reviewer and Environmental Auditor (IREA) to oversee the design, construction and environmental management of the project, and to monitor the environmental performance of the desalination plant when it begins operating.

These plans and systems enable monitoring, reporting and auditing activities to take place to ensure the environment is protected.