There is no doubt that a drought is devastating. Our agricultural sector has been hit very hard, with farmers in rural NSW and Queensland facing immence difficulties feeding and watering their live stock and sustaining their crops in what has been dubbed "The big dry". The effects of the big dry also extends to our drinking water supply, as both our surface and ground water sources depend on recharge from rainfall in our catchment areas. Indeed, this morning articles in the news have suggested that the drought could result in Sydney having to introduce drought restrictions (source 1), with concerns of falling dam levels. There is an obvious link between drought and water scarcity, however th

“You can have data without information, but you cannot have information without data.” – Daniel Keys Moran We need data to check that our treatment processes are working as required (e.g. critical control points) and verify that we are providing safe quality water to our customers. However, we should not use data for only a check against numerical targets or guideline values. We should also do a systematic review and analysis of water quality data over an extended period, typically the preceding 12 months or longer. This will help us identify emerging problems and trends and assist in determining priorities for improving drinking water quality. Often statistical analysis of data is undertake

In April 2014, the drinking water source in Flint, Michigan was switched from Lake Huron water with phosphate inhibitors to Flint River water without corrosion inhibitors. The absence of corrosion control and use of a more corrosive source increased lead leaching from plumbing. Due to the change in water source, the incidence of elevated blood lead levels increased from 2.4% to 4.9% after water source change, and neighbourhoods with the highest water lead levels experienced a 6.6% increase. (link) The water change was also linked to an outbreak of Legionnaires' disease in the county infecting 87 people, with 12 cases resulting in fatality. (link) So far, 15 people have been criminally charge

A person would have to be living under a rock to be unaware of the devastating drought affecting Australian farmers at present. With heart-breaking stories coming forth and fund raising events being put into motion almost daily, we couldn't ignore these cataclysmic conditions if we tried! And with good reason too. In 2011 Brisbane experianced the most disastrous floods we have endured since 1974. How ironic that the most devastating natural event that I personally, recall witnessing, would be caused by an inundation of water, as opposed to the scarcity of water, pushing farmers all over our sunburnt country into dire straits at present... With thousands of residents across Queensland displac

Our Recycled Water and Environment Workgroup Manager, Karen Pither sat down with Technical Officer (and resident Under-Grad) Maddie Wright to get the scoop on her experience juggling university and her on-the-job training with Viridis! Read on.. What are you currently studying? I’m in my final year of Chemical and Environmental Engineering What made you choose that degree/those degrees? Initially I only applied because I didn’t know what I wanted to do, but I really enjoyed my maths and science subjects and at the time all I knew about engineering was that it used both. Then, through my degree I was introduced to industry and what working as an engineer actually looked like. I also started t

On Sunday 29 July, three Viridis wilderness warriors made the trek down to the Gold Coasts beautiful Main Beach to take part in Planet Arks' National Tree Day planting with local community conservation organisation, the 'Friends of Federation Walk'. Our Recycled Water guru Karen Pither, our Process Engineer Glen Luscombe and our Office Manager Hanne Rasmussen, accompanied by their families (including one adorable Viridis canine Abbie the Lab), joined 45 volunteers at the site, collectively planting 1048 plants in an effort to revegetate an area of the bushland surrounding the beach, previously destroyed by fire. Alongside our tree planting efforts, a calculated 193,055 volunteers put their h