Legislative Council Fifty-First Parliament, Second Session (51-2) 51 2 Parliament of South Australia Legislative Council published Question Time Desalination Plants DESALINATION PLANTS The Hon. M. PARNELL Legislative Council DESALINATION PLANTS The Hon. M. PARNELL (l15:19): I seek leave to make a brief explanation before asking the Minister for Environment and Conservation a question about consultation with relevant government agencies about the site of the Adelaide desalination plant. Leave granted. The Hon. M. PARNELL Legislative Council The Hon. M. PARNELL: When the Desalination Working Group was announced back in March last year, minister Maywald said that one of the areas the group would research would be 'environmental implications of constructing and operating a desalination plant'. When reporting progress on the working group in September, the Premier said: Building a desalination plant is an extremely complex and expensive undertaking. It is not as easy as writing a press release. Its final cost will depend on where it is located, how the brine that it will produce is dispersed, where the brine is dispersed, and from where the energy to power it is drawn. In December, when announcing Port Stanvac as the location for a desalination plant servicing metropolitan Adelaide, the Minister for Water Security described attributes of the local marine environment as critical to the selection of Port Stanvac. She said: The desalination working group recommended Port Stanvac as the most suitable site for a reverse osmosis plant because of relatively deep seawater, marine dispersion characteristics, better access to water supply network, suitable land availability and lower construction costs. So, it was with a great deal of surprise that, on my request under the Freedom of Information Act to the Department for Environment and Heritage and the Environment Protection Authority for any documents or correspondence concerning the impact on the marine environment of a seawater desalination plant servicing metropolitan Adelaide, I was told by the Department for Environment and Heritage that 'not one document was found'. The EPA had only two documents, one being an invitation for an issues identification workshop for the desalination plant for key stakeholders and the second a follow-up email cancelling the workshop due to the unavailability of key personnel. I remind members that the Department for Environment and Heritage is the main government department concerned with the marine environment, and it is the repository of marine science expertise in South Australia, containing agencies such as the Coast Protection Board and the Coast and Marine Conservation Branch. The Environment Protection Authority is the agency charged with the responsibility of licensing any discharge by a desalination plant into the marine environment. I also remind members of another statement by the Premier in September, when he said: We do not intend to make a decision about such a massive investment lightly or without the best available information before us. We intend to do this properly, not in some slap-dash, haphazard, political quick-fix way, as proposed by the Liberal opposition. That would be negligent and irresponsible. My questions of the minister are: 1.	Why did the Desalination Working Group not consult with the Department for Environment and Heritage and the Environment Protection Authority on the impact on the marine environment of a seawater desalination plant before Port Stanvac was chosen as the preferred site? 2.	Whom did the Desalination Working Group consult, and on what information did it base its decision regarding the impact on the marine environment of a seawater desalination plant at Port Stanvac? 3.	Is the government guilty of, in the words of the Premier, 'some slap-dash, haphazard, political quick fix' by choosing Port Stanvac as the preferred site without even a cursory discussion with those parts of government with marine and coastal expertise? The Hon. G.E. GAGO Legislative Council Minister for Environment and Conservation, Minister for Mental Health and Substance Abuse, Minister Assisting the Minister for Health The Hon. G.E. GAGO (Minister for Environment and Conservation, Minister for Mental Health and Substance Abuse, Minister Assisting the Minister for Health) (15:23): I thank the honourable member for his question and ongoing interest in these important policy areas. The desalination plant is a key component of the government's strategy that involves the securing of our drinking water supply to the future. The building of a desalination plant is an extremely complex and expensive undertaking, to which this government has committed. In December 2007 the government announced Port Stanvac as the preferred site for the $1.1 billion plant to supply the 50 gigalitres of water for Adelaide. I have been informed that this decision was based on the extensive work of the desalination working group established in March 2007 and that the working group examined the impact of the drought on water supply, the feasibility of desalination, the preferred size and location and integration into the existing supply network and cost implications. I am happy to take on notice exactly with whom it consulted and the way that advice was integrated. I do not have that information with me today, but I will bring back a response. The temporary pilot is planned to be installed at Port Stanvac by the end of July, and this very small plant will help determine the key design criteria and processes that will allow seawater to be pre-treated to a sufficient quality and at a feasible cost for desalination in the gulf. A $3 million environmental baseline study for the Gulf St Vincent is continuing, and it will be followed by a full environmental assessment. The baseline water quality monitoring program has been initiated to provide a basis for future marine monitoring, to assess and measure the environmental performance of the desalination plant, and to assess pre-treatment and reverse osmosis process requirements. Sampling commenced in December 2007. A marine ecological characterisation study has been commissioned to characterise and classify the distribution, abundance and condition of marine habitats, species and communities in the region of the proposed intake and outfall zones; and to identify habitats, species or communities that may be impacted upon by the various elements of the desalination plant. The study involves marine surveys, both video and diver, that are conducted seasonally over a 12-month period. A hydrodynamic modelling study into the hypersaline discharge of a full-scale plant has commenced and will also help provide very important information. So, members can see that a great deal of preliminary investigations have been undertaken in relation to the commissioning of this desalination plant that will provide drinking water that is clearly needed, to ensure the environmental impacts are monitored carefully and environmental values are upheld throughout the project. In regard to the details of other information, as I said, I am happy to take that on notice and bring back a response.