Follow WA’s drought-proofing example, urges national desal expert
01 August, 2012Australia’s east coast urban planners and state governments need to hold their nerve on using major seawater desalination plants for effective drought‐proofing and not give in to short-term politics and vocal minorities. That’s the opinion of National Centre of Excellence in Desalination CEO Neil Palmer.
Economic visions for desalination in Australia
02 July, 2012The days have long gone since salt was a valuable commodity and Roman soldiers were paid in it, but for Deakin University’s Research Professor in Public Policy, Professor Michael Porter, the issue of salt, more specifically desalination, will be worth $496,891 in research funding.
Tapping geothermal energy to create fresh water for WA
07 June, 2012Researchers at The University of Western Australia will investigate the use of geothermal energy to desalinate groundwater in WA.
Desalination offers best water and food security insurance, says expert
27 March, 2012Desalination offers drying Australia the best water and food security insurance for the drier, more heavily populated decades ahead, according to one of the country’s leading water experts.
Industrial waste can power desalination
26 March, 2012Victoria University scientists have shown the viability of a new desalination technology that uses almost no electricity and has the potential to save huge amounts of water.
Desalinated water for greening Flemington
26 October, 2011If Flemington racecourse looks a lot greener and the roses more colourful this Spring Racing Carnival, the answer is several metres below the surface.
Water for good
24 October, 2011A huge new desalination plant in Lonsdale will provide South Australia with up to 100 billion litres of water each year for decades to come. Adelaide Aqua (a consortium of four Companies, United Utilities, Acciona, Abigroup and McConnell Dowell) has been contracted to design, build, operate and maintain the plant for the next 20 years.
Latest trends in optimising desalination technology
24 October, 2011 by Neil Palmer*Australia has invested $10 billion in six major seawater desalination plants around its coastline in as many years to waterproof its capital cities - at the same time providing a significant boost for renewable energy.
Desalination in Israel
07 October, 2011Increased water conservation and water use efficiency are a priority for countries worldwide. A vital process, in a number of countries, is to boost the supply of potable water by desalination. However, large-scale desalination typically requires large amounts of energy as well as specialised, expensive infrastructure, making it very costly compared to the use of fresh water from rivers or groundwater.
$2.7m in grants to Victorian desal researchers
13 September, 2011Almost $2.7m in grants from government and industry partners has been received by Victoria University researchers for three innovative desalination projects.
IDA World Congress 2011 opens 4 September in Perth
06 September, 2011The IDA World Congress 2011 on Desalination and Water Re-use opened in Perth on 4 September with a program focus of ‘Sustainable Solutions for a Thirsty Planet’.
Desal research facility opens in WA
06 September, 2011The WA government has opened Australia’s first Desal Discovery Centre and dedicated Desal Research Facility at Murdoch University’s Rockingham campus and has also announced funding of $3.8m in new desalination research.
Desal Discovery Centre to open in Western Australia
03 June, 2011A new centre will explain the benefits and opportunities desalination offers to Australia as a fully sustainable new source of water independent of drought and climate change.
Clean and green water infrastructure
23 February, 2011Australia is experiencing an evolution in water infrastructure. Desalination plants and water-recycling facilities are just some of the major water infrastructure projects being built across the country. For government and designers, the challenge is how to create water infrastructure that improves access to water while minimising environmental footprint.
Water treatment for coal seam gas industry
24 January, 2011 byQGC, an Australian coal seam gas explorer and producer, has signed a contract with a consortium of GE and Laing O’Rourke for the construction of a water-treatment plant in south-west Queensland that will support the region’s rapidly growing coal seam gas industry. Coal seam gas is a form of natural gas trapped in coal beds by water and ground pressure. High salinity water is produced as part of coal seam gas extraction, which must be treated in an environmentally responsible manner.
