Workshops

A series of workshops will be held within the main Ozwater ’12 program. Workshops will be participatory in nature and outcome oriented.

Workshops will be limited to 48 delegates.

There is no cost to delegates to attend workshops and there is no pre-registration. Attendance at workshops will be on a “first-come, first-seated” basis.

Tuesday 8 May 2012

1045 - 1215
FUTURE SYDNEY – MEETING THE CHALLENGE OF URBAN GROWTH IN THE SYDNEY METROPOLITAN AREA
Presented by: Sydney Water

1315 - 1515
WATER RECYCLING – WHO REALLY BENEFITS? WHO REALLY PAYS?
Presented by: Sydney Water

1315 - 1515
WATER SAFETY PLANNING – THE PLANNING IS IN YOUR HANDS!
Presented by: AWA WASH Specialist Network

1600 - 1730
OVERCOMING BARRIERS TO THE ACCEPTANCE OF POTABLE REUSE AS AN ALTERNATIVE WATER SOURCE
Presented by: Australian Water Recycling Centre of Excellence

1600 - 1730
IMPACT OF THE ISO STANDARD ON ASSET MANAGEMENT ON THE WATER INDUSTRY
Presented by: AWA Asset Management Specialist Network

Wednesday 9 May 2012

1045 - 1215
ACHIEVING SUSTAINABILITY IN URBAN WATER MANAGEMENT POLICY: LESSONS FROM THE PAST TO FACILITATE A MORE SUSTAINABLE FUTURE
Presented by: AWA Law and Policy Specialist Network

1045 - 1215
THE FUTURE ROLE OF WATER EFFICIENCY IN AUSTRALIA: DEVELOPING AND PROMOTING A COMMON APPROACH
Presented by: AWA Water Efficiency Specialist Network

1315 - 1515
SMART WATER GRIDS: THE AUSTRALIAN CONTEXT AND INTERNATIONAL APPLICATION
Presented by: SEQ Water Grid Manager

1315 - 1515
COLLABORATION IN STORMWATER HARVESTING – MOVING FROM THEORY TO PRACTICE
Presented by: Urban Water Security Research Alliance

1600 - 1730
TOWARDS MULTIDISCIPLINARY MANAGEMENT OF ENVIRONMENTAL WATER
Presented by: AWA Environmental Water Management Specialist Network

1600 - 1730
THINK SAFETY, SUSTAINABILITY AND SIMPLY – SUGAR’S ROLE IN WASTEWATER TREATMENT
Presented by: Sugar Australia

Thursday 10 May 2012

1045 - 1215
ADVANCES IN UNDERSTANDING TREATMENT USING OZONE, BIOLOGICALLY ACTIVATED CARBON AND BIOFILTRATION
Presented by: Urban Water Security Research Alliance

1045 - 1515 (half-day workshop)
CITIES OF THE FUTURE: FROM PRINCIPLES TO BEST PRACTICE
Presented by: IWA Cities of the Future Working Group

1045 - 1515 (half-day workshop)
AUSTRALIA’S GROUNDWATER CHALLENGE – PAST, PRESENT, FUTURE
Presented by: National Water Commission

1315 - 1515
WHAT’S BUGGING YOU? – THE EMERGENCE OF PATHOGEN X
Presented by: WQRA

Workshop Descriptions

FUTURE SYDNEY – MEETING THE CHALLENGE OF URBAN GROWTH IN THE SYDNEY METROPOLITAN AREA
Presented by: Sydney Water

The workshop objective is to provide a forum for discussion and development of practical initiatives for Water Utilities to partner with the Development Industry to deliver Urban Growth that meets the vision of Future Cities.

The Sydney Metropolitan Strategy aims to enhancing liveability, strengthen economic competitiveness, ensure fairness, protect the environment, and improve governance. The strategy also forecasts 769,000 new dwellings by 2036. At least 70% of the new dwellings are to be located in the existing urban footprint, and up to 30% in new release area. The investment in water infrastructure to service that growth is $X billion. Y% of that investment is required to service the 30% of development that occurs in the new release areas. Developers are constrained in the rate at which they can bring lots to market due to the limitation of available infrastructure.

Facilitator:
Norbert Schaeper, Manager Strategy and Support - Urban Growth, Sydney Water, NSW

Presenters:
A panel of 3 presenters will provide an overview of the Metropolitan Strategy, Sydney Water's Growth Servicing Program and developer’s perspective.

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WATER RECYCLING – WHO REALLY BENEFITS? WHO REALLY PAYS?
Presented by: Sydney Water

There are gaps in the current industry and community understanding of the full range of costs, benefits and risks, in broad environmental, economic and social terms. This limits investment in recycling options. The workshop will increase the knowledge of attendees in the full suite of costs and benefits to be consider in the business case for recycled water investments. The workshop is suitable to all in the water industry who are interested in water recycling. It is especially suitable to those who are involved in the investment decisions on water recycling schemes and trying to improve the financial performance of schemes.

There are several Australian research projects undertaking comprehensive analysis of the cost and benefits of water recycling schemes. These research projects are seeking though their analysis to increase the knowledge of stakeholders on when water recycling makes sense. Researchers from these research projects will present and led discussion at the workshop. Case studies will be part of the discussion in terms of cost and benefits. There will structured discussion for attendees to share their learnings and experiences from developing water recycling schemes.

Industry acknowledges that there are gaps in our understanding of the costs and benefits of recycling and this may limit the appeal of recycling proposals. Costs are often underestimated (and sometimes overestimated) in practice, including uncertainity about ongoing compliance, maintenance and renewal costs. Demand risks often are not adequately considered upfront and allowed for in the business case. Avoided costs for all beneficiaries can be significant and need to be taken into account. Benefits are potentially the key to making the business case viable for water recycling and yet quantification of benefits is often cursory. He full suite of benefits and beneficiaries associated with water recycling is poorly understood and externalities are inconsistently assessed.

This lack of detailed knowledge of the costs and benefits results in only superficial knowledge on the circumstances and locations in which water recycling schemes are mostly likely to be viable. At the same time, the community believes that recycling is inherently good and viable in most circumstances.

The workshop is designed to increase the knowledge of attendees about the costs and benefits of water recycling. It will update attendees on the research projects that are analysing the cost and benefits of water recycling schemes. The workshop will assist attendees to build better business cases for water recycling. It will help attendees set up funding framework that receives funds not just from recycled water customers and subsidies but from all beneficiaries for the benefits they receive.

Facilitator:
Darryl Lloyd, Manager, Recycled Water Development, Sydney Water Corporation, NSW

Presenters:
Cynthia Mitchell, Professor of Sustainability, Institute of Sustainable Futures, Sydney, NSW

Kym Whiteoak, Marsden Jacob Associates, VIC

Rachel Watson, PhD Candidate, University of Technology, Sydney, NSW

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WATER SAFETY PLANNING – THE PLANNING IS IN YOUR HANDS!
Presented by: AWA WASH Specialist Network

WASH (Water, Sanitation and Hygiene in Developing Communities) is one of the AWA’s Specialist Networks that promotes the availability of skilled, educated and effective Water and Sanitation specialists to assist developing communities. The network provides a forum to promote and facilitate the sharing of knowledge and access to appropriate technologies and expertise.

In this workshop, interested water professionals will gain an overview of WSP tools, progress of implementation of WSPs in the past few years and case studies from Asia-Pacific region including East Timor, Philippines, Vietnam and Nepal highlighting the success and challenges in assisting developing communities. The workshop will be a springboard for Australian water professionals to join the WSP Asia Pacific Network and contribute to the WHO’s collaborative activities to provide safe water to developing communities.

Water Safety Plans (WSPs) are increasingly recognized as a cost-effective, management-oriented, preventive approach to drinking-water safety. Their promotion is a key recommendation of the 3rd edition of the WHO Guidelines for Drinking-water Quality.

The AusAID/WHO Water Quality Partnership for Health has been instrumental in initiating capacity building in support of WSPs in the WHO South East Asia and Western Pacific Regions. Since 2005, activities were undertaken at global, regional, and country levels (Bangladesh, Bhutan, Cambodia, China, Lao PDR, Myanmar, Nepal, Viet Nam). This has led to all countries having gained practical WSP experience through pilots and training and most having developed or revised drinking-water quality-related sector policies in light of the project’s emphasis on integrated risk assessment and incremental risk management to ensure water safety, including the preparation of national strategies for scaling-up WSPs.

In the next four years, WSPs implementation will be scaled up and strengthens in urban population centres and rural water supply systems targeting other countries in the region including China and India. WSP activities will include strengthening institutional frameworks, tools to support WSP implementation and associated quality assurance, WSP promotion, harmonization, technical backstopping, hands on training for training of trainers and auditors.

Facilitator:
Asoka Jayaratne, Infrastructure Planning Division, Yarra Valley Water, VIC

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OVERCOMING BARRIERS TO THE ACCEPTANCE OF POTABLE REUSE AS AN ALTERNATIVE WATER SOURCE
Presented by: Australian Water Recycling Centre of Excellence

The Australian Government is providing $20 million of funding to the Australian Water Recycling Centre of Excellence through its Water for the Future initiative, a $12.9 billion investment to help Australia meet the challenges of our drying climate and rising demand for water.

An important goal for the Centre of Excellence is that reclaimed water is seen as acceptable ‘alternative water’ for augmenting drinking water supplies. The objective of this project is to engage with industry to develop a National Demonstration Education and Engagement Program that supports successful public engagement and addresses stakeholder concerns through the provision of contemporary scientific information on potable use.

Australian water utilities are under increasing pressure to maintain potable water supplies in the face of increasing population and the impacts of climate change and variability. In response to these pressures, water utilities have adopted a portfolio approach to water supply, diversifying supply beyond traditional reliance on rainfall dependent solutions such as water supply dams, to include water efficiency, water recycling and desalination as part of the water security mix.

While water recycling for non-potable purposes is generally well accepted, the critical role of potable recycling of wastewater has not been well explored. There are a number of barriers to potable reuse and the range and nature of impediments and unjustified restrictions set out in legislation and regulation needs to be understood. We know that governance arrangements have the potential to create powerful incentives and disincentives to invest in potable reuse facilities, compared with alternative water supply options.

The aim of this $10 million project is to work with the water industry to develop a national demonstration education and engagement program that supports successful public engagement and addresses stakeholder concerns (in particular the media, policy makers, community and politicians) through the provision of contemporary information on potable reuse as a viable water supply option. The project will develop innovative resources, based on evidence, about how to engage the community to enable informed decision making about water supply options.

The workshop will explore the extent to which the uptake of potable reuse in Australia is being stymied by media-driven panics that fuel an amplified cycle of misinformed public concern, stigma and political caution. Using relevant case studies, the workshop will examine the influence of traditional media, grassroots community activism, science communication and new media in influencing public opinion and public policy makers. At the workshop we will consider the effectiveness of engagement tools, including visitor centres, websites, social media and draw on our international experiences.

We will be testing some of our research initiatives with the workshop audience and this workshop provides a hands on opportunity to engage in this internationally important project.

Facilitator:
Gary Bickford, Director, Nestis Consulting, NSW

Presenters:
Ian Law, IBL Solutions, NSW

Greg Leslie, Associate Professor, UNSW, NSW

Catharine Lumby, Professor, UNSW, NSW

Helen Stratton, Griffith University, QLD

Jenny Fisher, Sydney Water, NSW

James Woods, Professor, UNSW, NSW

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IMPACT OF THE ISO STANDARD ON ASSET MANAGEMENT ON THE WATER INDUSTRY
Presented by: AWA Asset Management Specialist Network

The workshop objective will be to provide a forum for discussion and development of the practical implications for the Australian Water industry of the pending ISO Standard in asset Management (ISO 55000).

The intended audience will be all those involved in asset management from practitioners at the coalface to senior (strategic) managers.

2 or 3 key issues will be selected for discussion. These issues may be drawn from the following list:

Impact across the entire industry (regulators, suppliers, customers, water service businesses etc.)
Scalability of the standard (different requirements for different size water businesses?)
Achieving compliance/competence with the standard
Capability of the industry to accommodate the standards requirements
Financial linkages
Regulatory implications (Regulators position on issues such as compulsory certification; industry position on compliance vs. commitment)
Defining “Leadership” in the context of the ISO standard of AM

Facilitator:
Chris Adam, Co-convenor, AWA Asset Management Specialist Network/ Ramafin Pty Ltd, NSW

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ACHIEVING SUSTAINABILITY IN URBAN WATER MANAGEMENT POLICY: LESSONS FROM THE PAST TO FACILITATE A MORE SUSTAINABLE FUTURE
Presented by: AWA Law and Policy Specialist Network

Sustainable water management is an area that the AWA’s Water Management Law and Policy Network members have identified as requiring more debate.

This workshop aims to analyse the key regulatory, legislative and political challenges associated with sustainable urban water management, and how current policy can assist and hinder outcomes. The lessons learned that result from this workshop will be documented in a workshop report or discussion paper to be published by the Water Management Law and Policy Network.

The workshop will begin with an overview of key and topical instruments and recent research in the field of sustainable urban water management. The National Water Commission will also provide an overview of the direction of urban water policy in Australia.

Once the context is set, four interesting case studies will be presented representing key issues across four states. Audience participation will be encouraged and a lively panel discussion will be held to further draw out the lessons learned from each case study which could be applied more broadly in other jurisdictions.

Policies to be debated will include wastewater reuse, stormwater harvesting, integrated water management, water efficiency and the water planning process in urban and regional areas.

Facilitator:
Jennifer Mckay, Director of Centre for Comparative Water Law and Policy, University of South Australia, SA

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THE FUTURE ROLE OF WATER EFFICIENCY IN AUSTRALIA: DEVELOPING AND PROMOTING A COMMON APPROACH
Presented by: AWA Water Efficiency Specialist Network

Over the last decade the Australian water industry has responded well to the challenge of dramatically reduced inflows to water storages combined with increasing population. A combination of measures from demand management, restrictions, rebates and efficiency labeling through to managing leakage and supply augmentation, have been implemented to helped make the Australia water industry more resilient.

With drought conditions easing across much of Australia many jurisdictions have moved from restrictions to permanent water conservation measures. In this context the value of and investment in water efficiency is now coming into question.

This workshop will set out the key issues and challenges to ensure water efficiency continues to be a relevant and valued piece of the demand management jigsaw. Issues to be discussed will be the role of water efficiency in delaying construction of new supply and treatment infrastructure.

Three views from industry will be presented, highlighting the key challenges faced:

Stuart White or Damien Giurco from the Institute for Sustainable Futures giving an overview on water efficiency in Australia.
Reid Butler will present the AWA Water Efficiency Specialist Network’s position paper on water efficiency.
WSAA’s Strategy & Policy Manager will outline water utilities position on water efficiency in an era of diverse supplies and variable climate.

The presentations will be followed by breakout groups to discuss issues in more detail in the following areas:

Valuing efficiency in water supply/demand management
Retaining water efficiency knowledge and skills
Efficiency and resilience

Each breakout group will be facilitated by members of the AWA Water Efficiency Specialist Network. The aim of the breakout session is to allow workshop participants to add their knowledge and experience to the discussions, helping identify priority actions across each of the three topics. Participants will be given worksheets identifying some key action areas to help people add new perspectives to the mix.

Each group will then report back their findings to the whole workshop.

The workshop will be concluded by a final panel session setting out the key issues and actions identified.

The results of the workshop will be utilised to help shape the AWA Water Efficiency Network agenda and future actions including:

Gauging the importance of investment in water efficiency at present
Leveraging other work underway in this area
Advocating for sustainable funding in this area
Development of knowledge management tools to help share skills and experience
Promoting the importance of retaining qualified staff in water efficiency
Helping develop future publications

Facilitator:
Damien Connell, Strategic Advisor, Water Supply Demand Strategy, Melbourne, City West Water, VIC

Confirmed Presenters:
Reid Butler, BMT WBM, NSW

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SMART WATER GRIDS: THE AUSTRALIAN CONTEXT AND INTERNATIONAL APPLICATION
Presented by: SEQ Water Grid Manager

International interest in “Smart Water Grids” is growing:

Workshops in Korea and Singapore saw delegates visit the South-East Queensland Water Grid (2011)
Oxford University’s report on proof-of-concept field work in Africa into Smart Water Systems (2011)
IBM’s papers on the application of ‘Smart Water Grids’ in India (2011)
Venture capital fund investments in Israeli water grid monitoring technology (2011)
Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory assessment of The National Smart Water Grid™ Project (2009)

But not all water grids are the same.

What are the different approaches around the world to an integrated urban water supply – whether that be use of various built and natural environment approaches, differing policy and institutional approaches and utilisation of new technologies to enable ‘real-time’ holistic management of integrated, multi-source water supply and delivery systems.

As world-leading examples of the use of ‘water grids’, the Victorian and South-East Queensland Water Grids have seen a large increase in visiting government agency delegations interested in the application of these approaches to their local circumstances.

What are the specific areas of interest in the Australian water grids which are generating this international interest and what opportunities might this create for the broader Australian water industry?

This workshop aims to deepen industry and stakeholder understanding of ‘water grids’ – what they do (and don’t do), the benefits, the challenges and in particular, the potential international opportunities for Australian water industry participants.

Presenters:
Heechul Choi, Professor, Environmental Science and Engineering, Gwangju Institute of Science and Technology, SOUTH KOREA

Tze Weng Kok, Assistant Director, Network Optimisation, Public Utilities Board, SINGAPORE

Barry Dennien, CEO, SEQ Water Grid Manager, QLD

Peter McManamon, CEO, Linkwater, QLD

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COLLABORATION IN STORMWATER HARVESTING – MOVING FROM THEORY TO PRACTICE
Presented by: Urban Water Security Research Alliance

Stormwater harvesting represents a substantial untapped source of water in the urban landscape. Around 850 GL of stormwater flows out of SEQ in an average year compared with 350 GL of water used for urban purposes in 2010. Major opportunities for stormwater harvesting include dual reticulation in Greenfield developments (in lieu of rainwater tanks) or irrigation of high value public open space. Stormwater harvesting can also be an opportunity to achieve environmental benefits in creeks. However, many challenges to stormwater harvesting exist. Namely, how can stormwater be cost-effectively captured, stored, treated and supplied to end-users in an environmentally-beneficial manner that is compliant with all relevant regulations. What are the opportunities, risks and limitations for stormwater harvesting? How can the various institutional, commercial and regulatory and commercial barriers be overcome? How can new development best be undertaken to take advantage of stormwater resources over the long-term.

This “hands-on” workshop tackles the issue of finding collaborative solutions to the many hurdles around cost-effective, environmentally-beneficial, rigorously healthy and well-maintained stormwater harvesting. It aims to bridge the gap between theoretical goals and real solutions - focussed on the long term.

Short presentations will be used to set the opportunities from diverse perspectives e.g. (i) developers (ii) council (iii) regulators and (iv) recent science. Participants will be given a hypothetical urban development example in which they will need to work together to identify the major elements of a successful harvesting scheme. Results from each participating team will be discussed collectively by the workshop to identify common themes and messages. Implications for real-world planning will be explored.

Facilitators:
Brian McIntosh, Senior Lecturer, Integrated Water Management, International Water Centre, QLD and

Don Begbie, Director, Urban Water Security Research Alliance, QLD

Presenters:
Presenters will include: developers; council; regulators; science.

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TOWARDS MULTIDISCIPLINARY MANAGEMENT OF ENVIRONMENTAL WATER
Presented by: AWA Environmental Water Management Specialist Network

This workshop will explore the role of professionals from different disciplines collaborating to ensure better outcomes of determination, delivery and management of environmental water allocations as well as improved management of water management structures and storages. The audience is wide ranging and can include professionals involved in water management: engineers, scientists, policy officers, water managers, environmental and catchment managers. The learning objectives will be to explore ways in which each profession can help each other to achieve better environmental and resource outcomes by working together.

Speakers from Murray-Darling Basin Authority, Melbourne Water, WA Department of Water will discuss how multi-disciplinary projects have contribute to their objectives and explain how these case studies have been established, issues and solutions found. The workshop will have an interactive session where further case studies and elements of successful multi-disciplinary projects are drawn out from contributions from the participants. Facilitators will bring these elements and leanings together and make sure they are documented.

A brief outcomes report will be produced after the workshop and sent to participants.

Facilitators:
Lance Lloyd, Principal Ecologist, Lloyd Environmental, VIC and

Deb Nias, CEO, Murray Darling Wetlands Ltd, SA

Confirmed Presenters:
Robyn Loomes, Environmental Officer, Department of Water, WA

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THINK SAFETY, SUSTAINABILITY AND SIMPLY – SUGAR’S ROLE IN WASTEWATER TREATMENT
Presented by: Sugar Australia

Think Safety, Sustainability and Simply – Sugar’s Role in Wastewater Treatment.

Find out how you can lower your nitrogen outflow, lower the safety risks at your plants with a solution as simple as sugar. Sugar has been found to be the premier carbon source for the Wastewater Industry (*scientific study currently being completed so this will be verified and referenced). Plants have switched from more dangerous carbon sources to sugar whist other plants have been created to dose sugar solution.

Who should attend?: Plant Operators/ Managers, Process Engineers, CEO’s, Bid Managers, Regulatory Representatives.

Facilitator:
Julie Tawadros, Project Manager - Water, Sugar Australia, VIC

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ADVANCES IN UNDERSTANDING TREATMENT USING OZONE, BIOLOGICALLY ACTIVATED CARBON AND BIOFILTRATION
Presented by: Urban Water Security Research Alliance

This workshop aims to provide guidance and explore issues related tor ozone and BAC-based treatments for the production of high quality recycled water. The information will be applicable to a number of wastewater treatment plants nationally that stand to benefit from process upgrades to produce high-quality recycled water. It is also potentially relevant to water treatment process upgrades that are considering non-membrane treatment processes. The core of the workshop is focussed on the assessment, understanding and optimisation of Biologically Activated Carbon technologies for advanced treatment of secondary effluents by discussing cutting-edge research and analysis in areas of:

Key parameters influencing operational performance.
Investigating mechanisms of organic carbon and micro-pollutants removal.
Comparing their performance with other processes including Life Cycle impacts.
Identify and quantify bacterial communities in the biofilters.
Characterising organic matter before and after biofiltration to identify removal effectiveness.
Identifying potential issues with residual organic matter.
Investigating integration of biofiltration in the treatment process.
Performance validation and regulation.

Facilitator:
Don Begbie, CEO, Urban Water Security Research Alliance, QLD

Confirmed Presenter:
Julien Reungoat, Postdoctoral Research Fellow, Advanced Water Management Centre, QLD

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CITIES OF THE FUTURE: FROM PRINCIPLES TO BEST PRACTICE
Presented by: IWA Cities of the Future Working Group

This workshop will explore the urban water governance, collaboration, engagement, decision making and master planning strategies that have been used in cities that have implemented these principles.

Workshop participants will hear from panel speakers and be actively involved in:

1. Bringing together examples of what has, and has not, worked in implementing integrated water management in Australian and international cities, and
2. Using these examples to benchmark best practice.

The workshop outcomes will contribute to best practice guidelines for urban planners and water managers that will be presented at the 2012 IWA World Water Congress in Korea as a part of the IWA’s Cities of the Future program.

Hosted by:
IWA Cities of the Future working group, supported by Melbourne Water and GHD.

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AUSTRALIA’S GROUNDWATER CHALLENGE – PAST, PRESENT, FUTURE
Presented by: National Water Commission

Despite its significant contribution to national wellbeing, groundwater is often overlooked in the national water debate. Historically, it has been insufficiently measured and monitored, frequently misunderstood or taken for granted and increasingly overexploited. In recognition of these issues, the National Groundwater Action Plan was established in 2008 as a first step to improve groundwater knowledge and to progress groundwater reforms agreed under the National Water Initiative. Administered by the National Water Commission, $105m has been invested over 4 years in a suite of projects aimed at developing a sustainable approach to the management of the nation’s groundwater resources.

The workshop will provide participants with the latest knowledge and understanding of Australia’s groundwater resources and highlight the future challenges for integrated groundwater management. It will showcase the latest science and knowledge in key areas such as groundwater-surface water connectivity, groundwater dependent ecosystems, groundwater trading, groundwater and the mining and coal seam gas industries, and climate change impacts on groundwater. It will also include the most recently developed products and tools available to policy makers, water resource planners and managers.

Facilitator:
Rob Freeman, NWC Commissioner, Australia

Presenters:
Presenters will include: National Water Commission Commissioners and Executive staff; National Groundwater Working Group representatives; Leading Australian groundwater researchers

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WHAT’S BUGGING YOU? – THE EMERGENCE OF PATHOGEN X
Presented by: Water Quality Research Australia

It is no secret that the water industry as a whole has made one of the greatest societal contributions to public health through the management of water supplies, particularly the separation of waste streams from potable water sources. The continued provision of safe water provides challenges globally, with new threats emerging in the face of climate change, increasing urbanisation and new approaches to the supply of water.

This workshop poses a hypothetical situation to debate the state of our knowledge and explores short and long-term responses to emerging threats to public health. Do we really know everything there is to know about pathogens in water, or have we only just scratched the surface? Are existing management practices flexible enough to cope with new threats, or should we be adopting new approaches for management? What are the roles for government and industry in managing new threats and can existing arrangements cope with the potential variety of new threats?

This workshop is a panel-style ‘great debate’, consisting of leading experts from industry, regulatory bodies and universities, on microbial risk assessment. The debate and integrated discussion will examine the emergence of a hypothetical Pathogen X in Australian drinking water and what actions could be considered (and who should take them). The panel will explore both sides of the debate – for or against. There is a place for your view.

Questions to form part of the ‘great debate’ include:

The role of science in assessing and mitigating public health risks – forewarned is forearmed.
The response from industry and government in managing emerging issues of concern.
The optimum way to regulate - guidelines versus legislation.

If these and related questions are on your mind, we invite you to come along and participate in this debate, led by the internationally renowned panel. The workshop is designed to draw upon the audience to discuss and debate these important issues. Regardless of whether you have the view that the existing management structures are flexible enough to cope with whatever the future holds, or pose an alternative view on why we need to markedly change the way we do things in an ever-changing world, this workshop is for you. Please join us for this thought provoking workshop and challenge your thinking about microbial risk assessment and the response of industry, regulators and science.

The key outcome for this workshop is to engender discussion for mitigating emerging public health risks for the water industry as it faces an ever-changing and increasingly complex operating environment. The workshop is facilitated by an expert chair, who will encourage a high level of audience participation and robust discussion. This workshop will be fun, informative and, most of all, provocative. You can’t afford not to be there!

Facilitator:
Jodieann Dawe, CEO, Water Quality Research Australia, SA

Presenters:
Phil Callan, Principal Executive Officer, NHMRC, ACT

Mark O’Donohue, CEO, Australian Water Recycling Centre of Excellence, QLD

David Cunliffe, Principal Water Quality Adviser, SA Health, SA

Martha Sinclair, Senior Research Fellow, Monash University, VIC

Melita Stevens, Manager, Research and Technology, Melbourne Water, VIC

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