Water Management at Waite

The Waite campus precinct is one of Australia’s leading research, education and commercialisation clusters. Spread across 174 hectares, the campus uses a considerable amount of mains-water, with almost 60% currently going to research and landscape irrigation. This Green Project Fund project aims to understand the feasibility of utilising the Alverstoke bore for Managed Aquifer Storage and/or replacing mains-water with an alternative source.

Faculty/School/Unit: Waite Water Reference Group

Project Goals & Objectives 

• Understand the structure and integrity of the bore
• Understand the plumbing distribution system of the bore
• Understand the capacity of the groundwater system for additional utilisation 
• Reduce reliance on mains-water for research and landscape irrigation, therefore reducing costs
• Demonstrate best-practice water management practices

Green Project Fund: $15,000
Payback Period: 1 year

Preliminary investigations have already been undertaken, and if the structure, integrity and capacity of the bore can be confirmed, bore-water use could increase, immediately reducing the reliance on mains-water and saving the University money.

Of all the campuses, Waite provides the most opportunities for mains-water replacement, but concepts could be applied across all campuses.

Lead Project Representative: Andrew Brokenshire

Office of Sustainability Contact: Mathew Jeffrey