Water efficiency case studies

About AMP Capitol Investors:

The group owns and manages a range of high-profile properties in the Melbourne central business district including office towers, food courts, retail precincts and hotels.

Water use:

The water used across the company’s property portfolio is primarily attributed to bathrooms, kitchens, tearooms and cooling towers. The Collins Place site also uses additional water in its retail precinct, which has food courts, retail spaces, hotels and office towers. Another building within its portfolio uses storm water for toilet flushing, fire hose reels and air-conditioning cooling towers. AMP Capital Investors continues to proactively seek out new water saving opportunities.

Implementation:

A water efficiency project included the installation of waterless urinals with a unique, low-cost design across 4 flagship sites. The new urinals eliminate the need for constant flushing and use of harmful cleaning chemicals, while minimising odours.

Results:

The aim of the project was to save 25 million litres of drinking water per year – a target which has been well exceeded, with the waterless urinals delivering actual savings of 61.1 million litres.

About CSR

CSR produces ethanol (ethyl alcohol) by fermenting molasses which is a by-product of sugar fermentation.

Project: Yarraville Distillery Cooling Tower Replacement

Purpose:

CSR is one of three major Australian producers of ethanol products. It is also a significant supplier to the food, beverage and industrial markets as well as the growing renewable fuel market in Australia.

Water use:

The Yarraville Distillery uses water in its plate and tube heat exchangers and condensers to cool ethanol vapours leaving the distillation columns. The site contains nine distillation columns and approximately 90 percent of all water on site is used in heat exchangers and condensers. The effluent leaving the base of two of the distillation columns is predominantly water. In 2007, CSR Ethanol investigated reuse options for the effluent in order to reduce water usage onsite and reduce the volume of trade waste discharged.

Implementation:

The company decided to redirect the effluent from the distillation columns into the main process cooling towers for use as make-up water. This compensates for the losses of water through evaporation.

However, it was found that the cooling towers did not have the capacity to handle larger flowrates. As a result and because of the inefficiencies of the cooling towers, CSR Ethanol opted to replace its cooling towers. The new cooling towers were commissioned in June 2008.

Results:

Overall site drinking water use decrease with installation of new cooling towers: 13% (approximately 18ML per annum) based on a decrease in make-up water of 6kL/hr whilst running the Barbet distillation column, and 1.6kL/hr when not running the Barbet distillation column, a reduction in make-up water use on cooling towers with new setup: 93%, a reduction in amount of trade waste discharged from site after installation of new towers: 43% (approximately 9ML per annum) and energy reduction achieved with the use of variable speed drives on fan motors to vary fan speed based on cooling water temperature.

About Imerys Minerals Australia:

Imerys Minerals Australia produces kaolin and employs 36 local people at its Pittong plant.

Purpose: Water is one of its major consumables in the process of extracting kaolin from the quarried material.

Water use:

Water is one of its major consumables in the process of extracting kaolin from the quarried material. They wanted to lower water consumption down to 5KL per tonne of finished product. They wanted to maximise recycled water used and the amount of their product created.

Implementation:

The business fitted low-flow shower heads and cistern weights, checked all taps and valves for leaks, upgraded the pipe and pump capacity for transferring treated water to the storage dam for re-use (to help meet plant demand), installed a flow meter in the laboratory to monitor usage, used recycled water on pump seals, adopted a weekly inspection program to monitor for leaks and introduced an education and reminder program to encourage the operators to aim for maximum efficiency.

Furthermore, they also upgraded the pit catchment and delivery system, which captures plant water and stormwater, enabling stormwater to be pumped directly to the pre-treatment holding dam (to improve the water quality and increase the capacity to recycle). They installed a floating pump to reduce the level of the (lowest) pre-treatment holding dam to maximise capture of stormwater without overflow and increased level control at the final treated water storage dam to minimise the use of water during times of high plant demand for water.

They also introduced recycled water to hoses for wash downs and spills projects that benefit the local community (not related to production) and made treated water accessible to local fire authorities for firefighting. They also recycled 1,200L water tanks to eligible local pensioners.

As a further initiative, the business offered to pump water from its Lal Lal site into the Ballarat system whenever possible. A total of 300 million litres was transferred in the first two years.

Results:

Imerys achieved significant improvement in terms of their water efficiency. Transfer and storage improvements in the water recycling process have led to the biggest savings.

Whilst it is difficult to be precise with the kilolitres (kL) per tonne, businesses measure their water use with this indicator because of product variation. It appears that Imerys has improved their water efficiency by around 20%.

About Shell: This global energy organisation employs over 2600 people in Australia and provides for one-third of Australia’s petroleum requirements.

Purpose:

The Shell Newport Terminal is Shell’s major fuel distribution centre in Victoria. Around 2.2 billion litres of petroleum products flow through this terminal to Victoria and the New South Wales Riverina districts each year. The core products distributed by the Newport Terminal are diesel, solvents, base oils, fuel oil, unleaded petrol and aviation fuel.

Water use:

Shell Newport Terminal is required to undergo weekly fire pump testing due to its status as a major hazard facility. The water used in these fire pump tests was being directed into the stormwater drain and washed away. A water audit initiated by Shell found that 25 percent of the site’s water was being used during these mandatory fire pump tests. This represented around 80kL per week and made the fire pumps a prime candidate for water saving change.

Implementation:

A project was introduced to continually reuse water used by the fire pumps during the weekly tests. A water recirculation tank was installed to capture and reuse the water used to test the pump operation. As the water is not being exposed to any other part of the plant, it remains contaminant free, ensuring the performance of the pumps and the health and safety of maintenance and fire-fighting workers is not compromised.

Now established and fully operational, the fire pump test water recirculation system boasts no ongoing drinking water requirements. The water savings that have been realized from the project will continue into the future.

Results: Water savings of 4.2 ML per annum and a reduction in storm water discharge.

About Eureka Linen:

Eureka Linen is a business unit of Ballarat Health Services and has been operating since 1979.

Purpose:

It provides approximately 55 tonnes of rental linen a week to healthcare and hospitality facilities around the state.

Water use:

The company is one of the region’s largest water users, as significant amounts of water are required throughout the cleaning process.

Implementation:

Eureka planned to save water by recycling 35 million litres of laundry water per annum. This was accomplished through the installation of an ultra-filtration recycling system to recycle the wastewater from the laundering process.

Results:

The recycling system was expected to save more than 40ML of potable water per annum. The cost of operating the filtration plant is offset by energy saved by reusing warm water.

About McCain Foods:

McCain Foods produces a wide range of frozen potato products, frozen pizzas and dinners and employs over 700 people at its manufacturing facility in Ballarat.

Water use:

High levels of water are used in the production of various foods. Still, McCain Foods has recorded the highest level of water savings in its region in response to Ballarat’s record low water storage levels in 2006.

Implementation:

Water-saving measures have been wide ranging and include installing new equipment to increase internal recycling of process water, replacing equipment with units featuring improved water-efficiency, installing water chillers to improve the efficiency of water-cooling process and adopting water-efficient cleaning methods. McCain installed extra sub-meters to maintain water use in a number of areas helping them to identify and qualify opportunities for further improvements.

Results:

McCain saved over 30% of its annual consumption as a result of implementing an initial phase of projects. The business expected to save a further 15% or more as a result of some second-phase projects. The total projected savings are estimated to be approximately 50% of its previous annual consumption. In terms of best practice, the Wendouree plant's water efficiency is now in the top 20% of 29 plants in the McCain group worldwide, bested only by newer plants.

About Sugar Australia:

Sugar Australia is the nation’s leading supplier of quality refined sugar products. They market using the household name CSR Sugar.

Water use:

During the phosphatation process, a by-product containing calcium phosphate and completely dissolved solids including dissolved sugar is created, which, at the time, was discharged to sewer as trade waste. Sugar Australia embarked on a project to remove calcium phosphate from the trade waste at their Yarraville refinery.

Implementation:

It was necessary to remove dissolved solids (specifically calcium phosphate) from the trade waste in order to be able to reuse the water. Therefore a centrifuge decanter was installed to separate significant amounts of water from the solids.

Results:

Water savings of 13ML per annum, 188 tonnes of completely dissolved solids per year not discharged to sewer, 51 tonnes of phosphate per year not discharged to sewer, 3,000 tonnes of phosphate cake per year sent for composting, significant amount of sugar recovered and reused and 16 million litres of trade waste avoided.

About Joe White Maltings:

Joe White Maltings Ltd is a malting company that exports 33,110 tonnes of malt for breweries (mainly in Vietnam, Thailand and Korea).

Water use:

Malt making requires significant volumes of water in the steeping and germination processes.

Implementation:

In order to significantly reduce water consumption and decrease cost by reducing trade waste discharge, they introduced a Membrane Bioreactor and Reverse Osmosis (MBR-RO) plant. The bioreactor digests most of the organic matter normally discharged to the sewer.

Results:

The MBR-RO plant was projected to cut potable water use by around 50%, creating a projected savings of approximately 50 million litres (ML) of water per annum. The bio-reactor digests most of the organic matter normally discharged to the sewer. It's projected that this will create a significant decrease in trade waste cost and ease loading on the regions existing waste water treatment plant.

About Heynes Wholesale Nursery:

Heyne’s Wholesale Nursery was first established in 1869 and is said to be the oldest registered nursery in Australia.

Purpose:

Five generations of Heyne’s have contributed to making it one of the best production nurseries in the country and placing an emphasis on always looking to the future. Heyne’s is a very diversified nursery business, growing hundreds of different plant and tree species. Ornamental stock for retail, along with mass-produced landscape and revegetation stock lines, dictate that simplicity and consistency of the nutrition supplied is key.

Water use:

Heyne’s Wholesale Nursery has a water management strategy involving a range of water efficiency measures which substantially reduced consumption. Their driving motives for optimising water usage was increasing water costs, a desire to expand their business, improving production efficiency and minimizing environmental impacts.

Implementation:

Significant improvements to irrigation efficiencies and water recycling measures have been made. The existing sprinkler system was tested and an alternative was recommended. A new low application rate sprinkler, the Antelco Roto Rain, has increased water distribution uniformity from 67% to 87%. This has a projected reduction of 15,000 kL per annum at a saving of approximately $13,000. Water is not always dispersed directly to the pots (influence of wind), so placing less sensitive plants around the sprinklers has enabled more plants to be grown with the same amount of water. Selected segregation and grouping of different plant varieties according to water requirements has led to more efficient water usage.

Results:

The installation of more efficient sprinklers and the introduction of a new evaporation monitoring system reduced water consumption by approximately 30%, resulting in an annual saving of approximately $21,000. Further savings of $30,000 are expected when water is sourced from the nearby Kaurna Park wetlands.

About University of Melbourne:

Established in 1853, the University of Melbourne is a public institution that makes distinctive contributions to society in research, teaching and knowledge transfer.

Purpose:

The University of Melbourne’s Parkville campus is their largest and most complex site and is home to many historical buildings.

Water use:

A significant amount of water is used to cool existing water pumps that run continually.

Implementation:

Many water saving initiatives have been implemented at the site, including upgrading bathroom taps and toilets, changing gardening methods and irrigation schedules, optimising mechanical services in plants and fixing cooling tower leakages. The University of Melbourne saw a significant water-saving opportunity in the use of new vacuum pumps at the site. The University changed over their water-cooled vacuum pumps with the air-cooled versions in four buildings at the Parkville campus.

Results:

The water savings have been significant: over 8 million litres of water a year have been saved since the project was completed in 2008. As well as saving water, the project has delivered significant energy savings through the use of more energy efficient pumps. The previous pumps ran almost continuously, whereas the new air-cooled vacuum pumps run for approximately one hour per day. The increased efficiency of the pumps and their operation has resulted in power savings of 165 MW/yr. As a result of this saving, the University of Melbourne is not only enjoying reduced bills, but has also removed the annual equivalent of 201 tonnes of carbon emissions from the atmosphere.

About Maryborough Hospital:

Maryborough Hospital is one of the Maryborough District Health Service’s (MDHS) three campuses. It has 143 beds.

Water use:

The hospital uses water for hand basins, sinks, showers, toilets and many more systems such as sterlizing processes and recycling wastewater. They also use a significant amount of water irrigating gardens that play a significant part in the care they supply.

Implementation:

The hospital had installed flow control valves on all taps and replaced all their single flush toilets. To reduce water usage significantly, they looked to harvest and store its own water in order to irrigate the gardens and grounds and ensure the hospital was achieving the highest possible water efficiency. They installed a PVC liner to an existing underground coal bunker to give an additional 125KL storage capacity, a system to capture the rainwater from the roof and a water management system all used for external irrigation. It also introduced a reticulation system (pumps and pipes) so they could recycle waste water from the sterilizing process.

Results:

Based on rainfall patterns and roof catchments, the capture and storage system at Maryborough Hospital now yields an additional 2,736KL per annum. A further 134KL of recycled water is harvested from the sterilising unit. Expected savings per annum as a result of initiatives are 1,188KL (12% of consumption).

About the Westin Melbourne:

The Westin Melbourne is a modern, elegant and luxurious 5-star hotel in the heart of the city.

Water use:

Last year, over 110,000 guests stayed at the hotel and used over 50 million litres of drinking water.

Implementation:

The Westin Melbourne replaced employee and swimming pool showerheads with a more efficient model. For the 540 guest showers, the hotel has installed new premium shower heads that not only improve water efficiency, but also deliver a luxurious shower that matches its 5-star quality standards.

In addition to its water saving initiatives, the hotel committed to reducing its carbon footprint and now monitors energy consumption to help achieve its overall sustainability goals. The shower head upgrade was projected to make a significant contribution towards these goals, as energy used for heating water accounts for a large proportion of the hotel’s overall energy consumption.

Results:

The new shower heads were expected to reduce water use by 12.6 million litres per year. As for the reducing the hotel’s carbon footprint, the aforementioned project alone will reduce gas consumption by 3,600 gigajoules per year, and has reduced greenhouse gas emissions by 184.9 tonnes, equivalent to more than 3.6 million black balloons.

About Golden Heights Citrus Orchard:

Stuart Pettigrew originally came from the Riverland. Stuart has a commercial interest in making sure the rivers are healthy because it means that he can continue his production on the farm. Plus, he has a personal reason: he loves the river!

Water use:

The orchard at Golden Heights is around 10 acres of new citrus orchard. Water saved from Stuart’s project is being used to restore the Murray–Darling Basin.

Implementation:

Rather than install a traditional overhead irrigation system, Stuart chose mini sprinklers that give reasonably large coverage across the whole orchard floor. He also installed a fertiliser and filtration system that is powered by a solar panel. Stuart’s project was funded by the Australian Government.

Stuart achieved a higher production yield per megalitre of water through water efficiency measures. This is also the key motivator for a lot of growers through the Murray–Darling Basin.

The benchmark in areas like this used to be 20 to 25 tonnes per hectare of marketable fruit. Now, we’re aiming for 45 to 50 tonne of fruit per hectare.

Additionally, stewardship of the river goes hand in hand with sustainable agriculture. Stuart is seeing areas that were abandoned five years ago now coming back into production: that’s got to be good for rural communities like this one.

Results:

Well-targeted, well-managed programs to raise efficiency certainly should be encouraged throughout the whole Murray–Darling Basin. Stuart’s project saved 12 megalitres of water, helping to restore our river system.

About Victoria Wool Processors:

Victoria Wool Processors receives bales of wool from farms all over Australia.

Purpose:

Before the wool is ready for export to wool mills around the world, it undergoes an intensive cleaning and processing procedure to remove grass seeds and other vegetable matter.

Water use:

The wool is first blended into 14-tonne lots and is then washed using a detergent to remove bulk dirt particles. From there, the wool is immersed in 7,500 litre ‘acid bowls’ that attack the vegetable matter. The wool is then dried to increase the acid concentration and crushed up. The combination of acid, heat and pressure carbonises the vegetable matter, which is shaken loose from the wool fibre. Once acids are neutralised, the wool is dried and re-baled ready for export.

The acid bowls used for cleaning the wool contain a 5% sulphuric acid solution. Previously, after a three-week period of use, the acid solution was treated and discharged to the sewer system.

Implementation:

The process of taking wool from a sheep’s back to the wardrobe can involve considerable volumes of water. While the industry standard of water-per-kilogram of wool is around 40 litres, Victoria Wool Processors set out to slash this by almost half. Victoria Wool Processors determined that the amount of water used in the acid-bowl stage could be significantly reduced through the use of a hyrdocyclone – a device that separates or sorts particles in liquids using a centrifugal force. The company was already using hydrocyclones in other areas of the processing facility.

Victoria Wool Processors now use hydrocyclones to treat the acid-water mix and remove suspended particles. This allows the solution to be reused – rather than being discharged to sewer. This has dramatically reduced the volume of water and acid being used at the site.

Results:

The company estimates that the use of hydrocyclones has helped save over 650,000 litres of water per year! Similarly, by reusing the acid solution, salt outputs decreased by 10 tonnes per year.