Australian Water Management Review Vol 2 2013

Water connectivity project brings forward creation of new Operations Control Centre More efficient management of water services are high on the agenda for many water utilities as they review ways to maximise the effectiveness of their water supply networks while meeting customer needs. I nvestment in water security infrastructure is paramount to help achieve these goals and a key decision made in 2008-09 was to ‘connect up’ Adelaide’s northern and southern water supply systems as part of the North South Interconnection System Project. During the worst drought in South Australia’s history, the South Australian Government developed its Water for Good Strategy, detailing its plan to secure sustainable water supplies well in to the future. One of the key components to the strategy was the $403 million North South Interconnection Project (NSISP). This project supplements the state’s existing water supply network and is part of an innovative, long-term solution to deliver flexible and reliable water supplies that are essential to meeting existing and future demand, while also ensuring water security during events such as prolonged drought. Prior to the NSISP, Adelaide’s water supply network operated as two essentially separate systems – north and south. Each had its own water storage facilities and was supplied by separate pipelines from the River Murray. This meant that the majority of homes and businesses in the metropolitan area had access to just one water supply source. The NSISP connects Adelaide’s northern and southern water supply networks to allow water to move across one connected system. It also allows us to move drinking water from the Adelaide Desalination Plant in Adelaide’s south to our customers in the northern parts of the city. Rob Dowling, SA Water’s General Manager Operations & Maintenance, says that the NSISP proved to be a catalyst to develop and implement a range of tools that were already in the pipe line for the new Operations Control Centre (OCC) which operates 24 hours a day, seven days a week. “NSISP, which reached operational handover in December 2012, was a sophisticated project which included the construction of 32km of new infrastructure pipe work, three new pump stations and pressure regulating valves throughout the South 16 | Australian water man age m e nt re v ie w

Australian Water Management Review Vol 2 2013 | Page 22