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Draft Position Paper on Environmental Management Systems in the Water Services Industry

Please note that this paper is held here for archival purposes, the most up to date papers are currently held on the Engineers Australia website.

Background

The principles of ecologically sustainable development apply to water resources management and it is a policy of the Institution to assist and encourage the adoption of these principles by the profession.

The need to efficiently and effectively manage the harvesting and quality of our limited water resources has long been recognised. Complex water management infrastructure systems and regulatory structures have been instituted to achieve the needs of the community. The need for formalised environmental management by the water industry itself is, however, only now emerging as an essential component of sustainable development and management of our water resources.

Environment Management Systems

The need for formal environmental management in the manufacturing industry has been recognised for some years now and in 1996 the International Standards Association published its Standard for Environmental Management Systems (EMS) (ISO14001). This specifies a structured approach to Environmental Management by an organisation similar to that required for Quality Management Systems(ISO9001 and ISO9002), facilitating their integration at the procedural level in an organisation.

Standards Australia adopted ISO14001 in 1996 (ASNZS14001). A number of Australian water utilities now have EMSs in place.

An EMS contains the following key elements, based on the headings in AS/NZS 14001:

Environment Management Systems in the Water Industry

The Water Industry has responded quickly to this emerging development, and while the draft of ISO14001 was being developed, environmental management guidelines for the Australian Water Industry were also in preparation by the Water Services Association of Australia. These Guidelines have now been published[1] and provide specific guidance to the Water Industry in the application of environmental management principles.

The relevance of these Guidelines and the need for Environment Management Systems is evidenced by the Victorian Government initiative in April 1995, when the Water Bureau within the (then) Department of Conservation and Natural Resources published its 1996/97 Business Planning Guidelines. These cover the Victorian non-metropolitan Water Authorities, over which it has jurisdiction. These Guidelines required all of these authorities to have implemented an Environment Management System (EMS) by the end of the 1996/97 financial year and to make provision for this in business plans.

Many Australian Water Authorities are now well advanced in the development of an EMS and several have received certification of their EMS against AS/NZS14001.

Queensland legislation can impose a requirement for an EMS, where the EMS principle is built into licensing provisions.

ACT Electricity and Water (ACTEW) has implemented an EMS and has integrated this system with its Quality and Health & Safety Management systems. ACTEW provides all water and wastewater services in the ACT and has established this integrated system at its Lower Molonglo Water Quality Control Centre (LMWQCC) a major sewage treatment facility operated by ACTEW.

In Tasmania, the HEC is the only water industry organisation in with an EMS in place. There is no regulatory obligation for other water authorities to implement an EMS.

In Western Australia, Office for Water Regulation (OWR) does not have an EMS requirement. The OWR issues licences to water service providers, notably the Water Corporation, Bunbury and Busselton Water Boards, and South West Irrigation. The OWR also issues licences to local govt, particularly for sewerage systems. The Water Corporation Western Australia(WRC) has a Corporate EMS and recommends (but doesn't require) EMS systems for certain licences, but that is in relation to water users, rather than water service providers. The WRC, however, sometimes recommends that EMS type systems be used in certain circumstances, notably for mining projects (dewatering/water supply). In summary, in Western there is not an EMS requirement for water service PROVIDORS, but that EMS requirements are sometimes required as part of abstraction licences in certain circumstances, notably mining.

The Institution of Engineers’ Position with respect to Environmental Management in the Water Industry

In accord with the Institution’s policy on sustainable development and responsible environmental management, the Institution supports and encourages the adoption of Environment Management Systems by Water utilities and other bodies involved in the management of water resources. This applies to all aspects of a utility’s operations, including catchment management, water harvesting and storage, conveyance, treatment, reticulation and wastewater collection treatment and disposal. A water utility’s EMS should also address support services including capital works, maintenance and administrative functions. Wherever appropriate, the integration of the Authority’s EMS with its Health & Safety and Quality management systems is recommended in the interests of efficiency and streamlined risk management.

The IEAust will encourage the implementatiom of EMSs by the water industry by distribution of this Position Paper and promotion at appropriate events.

Further Information or Comment

For further information or comments contact:

Neil Wellington

National Committee on Water Engineering
The Institution of Engineers, Australia
11 National Circuit
BARTON, ACT 2600

Prepared on behalf of the National Committee on Water Engineering

by Neil Wellington, April 2000.

[1] Water Services Association of Australia (1995) “Environmental Management Guidelines for the Australian Water Industry”.