Agenda of Water and Sewer Advisory Committee Meeting

CONFLICT OF INTERESTS

What is a “Conflict of Interests” - A conflict of interests can be of two types:

Pecuniary - an interest that a person has in a matter because of a reasonable likelihood or expectation of appreciable financial gain or loss to the person or another person with whom the person is associated.

Non-pecuniary – a private or personal interest that a Council official has that does not amount to a pecuniary interest as defined in the Code of Conduct for Councillors (eg. A friendship, membership of an association, society or trade union or involvement or interest in an activity and may include an interest of a financial nature).

Remoteness – a person does not have a pecuniary interest in a matter if the interest is so remote or insignificant that it could not reasonably be regarded as likely to influence any decision the person might make in relation to a matter or if the interest is of a kind specified in the Code of Conduct for Councillors.

Who has a Pecuniary Interest? - a person has a pecuniary interest in a matter if the pecuniary interest is the interest of the person, or another person with whom the person is associated (see below).

Relatives, Partners - a person is taken to have a pecuniary interest in a matter if:

· The person’s spouse or de facto partner or a relative of the person has a pecuniary interest in the matter, or

· The person, or a nominee, partners or employer of the person, is a member of a company or other body that has a pecuniary interest in the matter.

N.B. “Relative”, in relation to a person means any of the following:

(a) the parent, grandparent, brother, sister, uncle, aunt, nephew, niece, lineal descends or adopted child of the person or of the person’s spouse;

(b) the spouse or de facto partners of the person or of a person referred to in paragraph (a)

No Interest in the Matter - however, a person is not taken to have a pecuniary interest in a matter:

· If the person is unaware of the relevant pecuniary interest of the spouse, de facto partner, relative or company or other body, or

· Just because the person is a member of, or is employed by, the Council.

· Just because the person is a member of, or a delegate of the Council to, a company or other body that has a pecuniary interest in the matter provided that the person has no beneficial interest in any shares of the company or body.

Disclosure and participation in meetings

· A Councillor or a member of a Council Committee who has a pecuniary interest in any matter with which the Council is concerned and who is present at a meeting of the Council or Committee at which the matter is being considered must disclose the nature of the interest to the meeting as soon as practicable.

· The Councillor or member must not be present at, or in sight of, the meeting of the Council or Committee:

(a) at any time during which the matter is being considered or discussed by the Council or Committee, or

(b) at any time during which the Council or Committee is voting on any question in relation to the matter.

No Knowledge - a person does not breach this Clause if the person did not know and could not reasonably be expected to have known that the matter under consideration at the meeting was a matter in which he or she had a pecuniary interest.

Non-pecuniary Interests - Must be disclosed in meetings.

There are a broad range of options available for managing conflicts & the option chosen will depend on an assessment of the circumstances of the matter, the nature of the interest and the significance of the issue being dealt with. Non-pecuniary conflicts of interests must be dealt with in at least one of the following ways:

· It may be appropriate that no action be taken where the potential for conflict is minimal. However, Councillors should consider providing an explanation of why they consider a conflict does not exist.

· Limit involvement if practical (eg. Participate in discussion but not in decision making or vice-versa). Care needs to be taken when exercising this option.

· Remove the source of the conflict (eg. Relinquishing or divesting the personal interest that creates the conflict)

· Have no involvement by absenting yourself from and not taking part in any debate or voting on the issue as of the provisions in the Code of Conduct (particularly if you have a significant non-pecuniary interest)

Committee members are reminded that they should declare and manage all conflicts of interest in respect of any matter on this Agenda, in accordance with the Code of Conduct.

RECORDING OF VOTING ON PLANNING MATTERS

Clause 375A of the Local Government Act 1993 – Recording of voting on planning matters

(1) In this section, planning decision means a decision made in the exercise of a function of a council under the Environmental Planning and Assessment Act 1979:

(a) including a decision relating to a development application, an environmental planning instrument, a development control plan or a development contribution plan under that Act, but

(b) not including the making of an order under that Act.

(2) The general manager is required to keep a register containing, for each planning decision made at a meeting of the council or a council committee, the names of the councillors who supported the decision and the names of any councillors who opposed (or are taken to have opposed) the decision.

(3) For the purpose of maintaining the register, a division is required to be called whenever a motion for a planning decision is put at a meeting of the council or a council committee.

(4) Each decision recorded in the register is to be described in the register or identified in a manner that enables the description to be obtained from another publicly available document and is to include the information required by the regulations.

(5) This section extends to a meeting that is closed to the public.

OATH AND AFFIRMATION FOR COUNCILLORS

Councillors are reminded of the oath of office or affirmation of office made at or before their first meeting of the council in accordance with Clause 233A of the Local Government Act 1993. This includes undertaking the duties of the office of councillor in the best interests of the people of Byron Shire and the Byron Shire Council and faithfully and impartially carrying out the functions, powers, authorities and discretions vested under the Act or any other Act to the best of one’s ability and judgment.

BYRON SHIRE COUNCIL

Staff Reports - Infrastructure Services 4.1

Staff Reports - Infrastructure Services

Report No. 4.1 The Case for Implementing Digital Water Meters

Directorate: Infrastructure Services

Report Author: Pablo Orams, Integrated Water Management Officer

File No: I2025/855

Summary:

This report aims to brief the WSAC on the investigations done by Council staff to assess the potential benefits and feasibility of adopting Digital Water Metering (DWM) across the Shire’s water supply network. It also provides key recommendations and a tentative plan/budget for its implementation. Staff hopes to gain feedback from the WSAC to identify further opportunities and/or challenges related to this proposal.

RECOMMENDATION:

That the Water and Sewer Advisory Committee: -

1. Notes the report and attached supporting documentation.

2. Provides staff with feedback regarding:

a) The appetite of Council and the community to adopt Digital Water Metering;

b) The information presented in this report (e.g. the benefits of DWM, recommendations for implementation, etc); and

c) Any knowledge gaps that staff may need to explore before presenting a project proposal to Council.

Attachments:

1 Report 16/10/2024 Executive Team Meeting (Operational) Digital Water Metering Pilot - Outcomes and Recommendations, I2024/1130 , page 26 ⇩

2 Conceptual diagram - Digital Water Metering system governance and architecture, E2024/93422 , page 58⇩

3 WSAA Digital Metering State of Play Summary Report, E2024/84547 , page 59⇩

4 Water Directorate 2021 Digital Metering Guidelines, E2024/84550 , page 66⇩

5 Report 04/12/2024 Executive Team Meeting (Operational) Preliminary implemetation plan - Digital water metering, I2024/1436 , page 116⇩

6 Digital Water Metering Project - Proposed 30-year budget - 28 May 2025, E2025/57655 , page 124

Report

1. Purpose

To brief the WSAC on the investigations done by Council staff to assess the potential benefits and feasibility of adopting Digital Water Metering (DWM) across the Shire’s water supply network. This report includes a tentative implementation plan and budget, funding strategy and other recommendations. Staff hopes to gain feedback from the WSAC to refine this project plan moving forward.

2. Background

Driven by the dry weather conditions leading up to 2019, Byron Shire Council conducted a DWM pilot project between 2020 and 2023. It involved the installation of 355 digital meters in East Mullumbimby (residential connections) and 31 in Byron Bay Recycled Water Scheme (municipal and commercial connections), testing the viability of a full-scale rollout, and the capabilities of the technology to address water security challenges, improve customer engagement and drive efficiencies in water services operations and planning.

The pilot provided valuable insights that highlight the strong potential of DWM, as well as the capabilities and resources required by Council to implement, operate and maintain a DWM system. The full pilot report is available in Attachment 1, and has served as the basis to design a roadmap for the adoption of DMW in Byron Shire.

3. What is DWM, and why is it important

DWM involves collecting and analysing near real-time water consumption data through a combination of automated remote reading devices (i.e. digital water meters), telecommunication networks, and data management and analytics software. Attachment 2 provides a conceptual diagram that outlines the key elements of a DWM system and how it may integrate with Council’s management systems.

The potential benefits of this technology are extensive, driving efficiencies across the potable water service supply chain. A good way to understand these benefits is to first look at the limitations of the traditional water consumption monitoring method based on analogue water meters. This is the approach currently used by Byron Shire Council, as well as most Councils and water utilities globally.

Figure 1 – A typical analogue water meter used in Byron Shire (left) and a digital water meter used during Council’s DWM pilot project (Right).

3.1. Analogue water metering (and its limitations)

In Byron Shire, a property connected to the water supply network will typically have an analogue water meter installed at the property boundary, between the water supply main and the property’s internal water plumbing. The meters are designed to record the volume of water (e.g. kilolitres) flowing into such property.

Water consumption data is collected by manually opening the meter’s casing and visually reading its dials. Meter reads are typically done by a contractor once every three months (at a cost of over $80,000/year), in alignment with the standard quarterly water billing cycle.

Collected data is then stored and handled by Council’s Water Billing team using a combination of Excel spreadsheets and other dedicated software (e.g. Authority). This data serves as the “point of truth” from which Council derives water bills, and inform operational, planning and investment decisions to improve water service delivery (e.g. demand management, infrastructure upgrades, etc.).

Despite the importance of water consumption data for Council, there are two fundamental limitations with obtaining it via an analogue water metering system: low data resolution and limited data accessibility.

Data resolution is only as good as how often meter reads are done over a period. The quarterly meter reading cycle (i.e. four data points per year) means that Council can only know the total water consumed over three months (see Figure 2 below), but has no visibility over how consumption changes within this time.

This is particularly problematic when dealing with issues such as water leaks, as these are very difficult to identify and quantify using a quarterly meter read. Leaks can go unnoticed for years, and their impact on water bills can be substantial. In some cases, leaks have been known to waste over $250 of drinking water per day. The same goes for instances of water theft, irregular water connections, faulty water meters, etc.

Figure 2 – Hypothetical example of a typical residential property’s water consumption data obtained via quarterly meter reads. This level of data resolution does not allow for the prompt identification of water leaks and another water use anomalies.

Similarly, data accessibility is limited by the manual nature of data collection, handling and quality control. During the quarterly meter reading process, it typically takes three weeks from the moment a meter is read to when the data is available in Council’s system (i.e. Authority). This lag time, combined with the low resolution of the data, means that Council staff and water users typically rely on outdated water consumption data to inform decisions.

3.2. The benefits of DWM

Contrarywise to analogue water metering, DWM can collect water flow data as frequently as every 15-to-60 minutes (high resolution), an allow for near real-time access to it via a dedicated user interface software (high accessibility). Figure 3 below provides an example how this data may be displayed.

Figure 3 – Example of digital meter data in the UtiliOS SaaS user portal. The light blue bars show daily total consumption. The dark blue line shows flow rate in 30min intervals.

Analytics can be applied to this data to discover and interpret water use patterns/anomalies, and streamline decision-making. For example, a DWM system can be set up to identify water leaks based on water flow patterns (e.g. a constant water flow during the night may be an indication of a leak) and notify Council staff and/or property owners immediately.

More broadly, DWM can drive efficiencies across Council’s water services supply chain, delivering benefits for customers, Council and the environment, as summarised in the table below:

Benefits of DWM…
…for customers	Improves water literacy and awareness
	Prompt detection and notification of water leaks
	Improves customer user experience
	Supports behaviour change
…for Council	Reduces non-revenue water
	Reduces cost of bulk water purchases, and improves water billing revenue
	Detects irregular water uses (e.g. water theft)
	Improves understanding of water demand
	Supports demand management efforts (e.g. during droughts)
	Improves operational efficiency and asset performance
	Improves water monitoring and modelling capabilities (e.g. water balance monitoring) at different scales
	Reduces low-value labour requirements associated with analogue water meter (manual meter reads, data handling, administration, etc).
	Defer water system capacity upgrades
	Reduces occupational health & safety risks
	Improves billing accuracy and streamlines billing processes
	Enhances transparency and engagement with stakeholders (e.g. customer disputes)
	Supports compliance efforts (e.g. liquid trade waste, water restrictions)
…for the environment	Reduces of water losses
	Reduces water demand
	Improves energy efficiency of water services, reducing GHG emissions
	Improves resilience to climate uncertainty
	Enhances collaboration across the water sector institutions

From the perspective of Council’s Community Strategic Plan, DWM has the potential support many of its objectives. This has been articulated in Section 5 of Attachment 1.

3.3. DWM in Australia

Councils and water utilities across Australia are increasingly moving towards the adoption of DWM.

As observed by the Water Services Association of Australia (WSAA) in their 2022 Digital Metering State of Play Summary Report (see Attachment 3), 61% of utilities and councils participating in the study are trialling digital metering, and 23% are rolling out the technology. Some examples include:

· City of Gold Coast - QLD

· Goulburn Valley Water - VIC

· SAWater - SA

· South East Water - VIC

· Sydney Water - NSW

· Toowoomba Regional Council - QLD

· Unity Water - QLD

· Water Corporation - WA

A more recent example is Rous County Council (RCC), which since 2024 has rolled out DWM for the majority of its 2,000+ direct water customers. Using the “My Rous” app, customers have access to timely data from their meters, and customisable updates and alerts about water usage and leakage detection. BSC has been engaging closely with RCC to learn from this experience and explore opportunities for synergies between both organisations.

Progress has also been achieved in understanding the business case behind DWM, and providing water utilities and councils with guidance to advance it. For example, the NSW Water Directorate released its 2021 Digital Metering Guidelines (see Attachment 4), which provides a framework to assess and understand the costs and benefits of DWM.

4. How could it be implemented, and what is required

Key recommendations for a Shire-wide rollout of a DWM system are summarized in this section. These are informed by the lessons learnt from Council’s DWM pilot project (see Attachment 1), consultation across various Council departments (including Finance and the Executive Team - see Attachment 5), ongoing discussions with RCC and information obtained from potential DWM service providers.

4.1. A staged rollout

Byron Shire’s water supply network is inherently complex and fragmented across a large area. It comprises over rateable 13,000 water connections distributed across 20 water supply catchments (see Figure 4) of varying size and on-ground characteristics.

It is recommended that DWM installations tackle one water supply catchment at a time, ensuring consistency and efficiency in the installation process and community engagement efforts. Also, once a supply catchment has been implemented, the full benefits of DWM can be immediately applied to that area.

A five-year timeframe (four water supply catchments per year) is being proposed (see Section 4.2. below).

4.2. Implementation plan and budget

Staff proposes a multi-stage implementation plan spanning 30 years. Capital and operational costs (i.e. Capex and Opex) have been estimated for each project stage. The costs presented below have been updated from previous estimates (shown in Attachments 1 and 5) as staff’s understanding of the nuances of DWM progresses. A working spreadsheet with the most recent costing estimates is available in Attachment 6.

i. Stage 1 – Planning, consultation and due diligence (Year 0): This is aimed at ensuring Council’s readiness to move into the implementation stage, reviewing the project plan and budget, and undergoing the necessary consultation and approval processes.

ii. Stage 2 – System implementation (Years 1 to 5): This stage involves the full-scale transition of Council’s water supply network to a DWM System, tackling 4 water supply catchments per year.

iii. Stage 3 – Ongoing system operation, maintenance and expansion (Years 6 to 30): This involves the ongoing management of a stablished DWM system, including its expansion in alignment with future development.

Cost (Net Present Value)	Stage 1 Planning, consultation, due diligence (Year 0)	Stage 2 Implementation (Year 1 - 5)	Stage 3 Ongoing operation, maintenance, expansion (Year 6 - 30)
Capex	$0.3 MM	$6.9 MM	$11.2 MM
Opex	-	$2.3 MM	$17.4 MM
Total	$0.3 MM	$9.2 MM	$28.5 MM

4.3. Human resources

Implementing a DWM System represents a fundamental change in how Council will govern water use consumption monitoring and related processes (e.g. water billing, leak detection, operations, planning, etc.).

There would be a shift from the current manual collection and handling of low-resolution water consumption data, to an on-demand, high-resolution and data-rich system with comprehensive analytics capabilities. While this will greatly reduce resources invested in low value-add manual tasks, it will increase resourcing requirements for system administration, cross-departmental coordination and high-value decision making.

It is also expected that interactions with customers will increase as DWM unveils leaks and other issues shortly after they happen, rather than being identified (if at all) through quarterly manual meter reads.

Additional roles (subject to further consideration and organisational requirements) are proposed to cater for these changes, and have been included in the cost estimates presented in Section 4.2. These roles include:

i. DWM Rollout Project Manager (1 FTE for 5 years, Grade 11, Skill step 3). This will be a fixed-term contract to oversee project implementation.

ii. DWM System Coordinator position (1 FTE, Grade 6, Skill step 3) within Utilities’ Systems Planning Team. This position will be responsible for coordinating the on-going operation and maintenance of the system, including technical support to the various departments using it.

iii. Support officer - Water Billing and Revenue (1 FTE, Grade 5, Skill step 3). This position will increase the capacity of the Water Billing and Revenue team to manage increased requirements for system administration and customer interactions.

5. Other considerations

5.1. Community acceptance and expectations

During Council’s DMW pilot project, community consultation results showed basic understanding of DWM, with benefits recognised for leak detection but concerns over costs, electro-magnetic radiation from the devices, and data privacy. Residents were interested in a detailed business case and the possibility of having an opt-in/opt-out option. There was minimal resistance to digital meter installations. Recommendations for a full-scale rollout include dedicating sufficient resources for a communication and community engagement strategy, considering an opt-in/out policy and assessing viability of providing direct water use data access to customers.

5.2. “Smart” or “Digital” water meters

During the pilot project, Council initially used the term “smart water meters”. This seems to suggest that the devices have “smart” capabilities such as a smartphones or laptops. This is partly true from the perspective of their connectivity capabilities (e.g. send the information they collect to a ‘cloud’ or server to be processed), but differently to smartphones and other smart devices, they don’t have computing or artificial intelligence capabilities to process data and/or perform complex tasks and decisions on their own.

To avoid any confusion regarding the capabilities and role of these devices, staff recommends Council adopts the term “digital water meters” instead. This issue should be further assessed when developing a communications plan for a full-scale rollout of the technology.

6. Final comments

DWM is an innovative technology for water consumption monitoring that can offers extensive benefits for rate payers, Council decision-making capabilities and the environment.

Council staff have undertaken extensive investigations, including a DWM pilot, providing valuable insights, lessons learnt and recommendations to progress the adoption of DWM.

Adopting DWM represents a paradigm shift in the management of water services, and will require careful planning, change management and resourcing.

There is wide-spread support from staff across Council departments, including the Executive Team, and the Australian water sector is progressively moving towards the mainstreaming of DWM.

Staff commit to continue with the development of this proposal, and engage closely with the WSAC and Council to ensure it is adequately considered.

Strategic Considerations

Community Strategic Plan and Operational Plan

CSP Objective	CSP Strategy		DP Action		Code		OP Activity
5: Connected Infrastructure		5.5: Provide continuous and sustainable water and sewerage management		5.5.1: Water supply - Provide a continuous water supply that is maintained in accordance with NSW Health guidelines		5.5.1.1		Continue to maintain Council's water and sewer assets

Recent Resolutions

Not Applicable

Legal/Statutory/Policy Considerations

Not Applicable

Financial Considerations

Various possible funding options have been identified following consultation with relevant Council staff. A high-level funding strategy for each stage of the project is provided below. It is important to note that defining the mix and magnitude of these options will require further work and consultation with Council’s Financial Services department.

Potential funding stream	Stage 1 Planning, consultation, due diligence (Year 0)	Stage 2 Implementation (Year 1 - 5)	Stage 3 Ongoing operation, maintenance, expansion (Year 6 - 30)
Council’s Water Fund	X
Government grants (if available)	X	X
Loan borrowing		X
Cost savings / revenue increases		X	X
Developer contributions		X	X
Water access charge increase			X

Loan borrowing is likely to be the main source of funding for system implementation. Council’s borrowing capacity for this project is to be defined in alignment with Council’s 30-year long term financial plan.

Government funding may be available. In the past, the Australian and NSW governments have offered co-funding programs to regional water utilities and Councils to undertake projects to improve water security outcomes. These include the Water Smart Australia program^{^[1]} and the Safe and Secure Water program^{^[2]}. However, these are not currently available. Council will need to actively engage with government counterparts (e.g. DCCEEW) to identify any future funding opportunities.

Cost savings / revenue increases are a result of the efficiency gained as DWM implementation progresses. These can be used to subsidise the implementation of digital meters, and may include:

· the wind-down of manual meter reading costs, mechanical meter replacements and the current water billing system (MVRS).

· Reduction of non-revenue water (e.g. leakage), hence reducing bulk water costs paid to RCC.

· Increased water billing revenue

· Other efficiency gains such as reducing staff time spent on low-value manual tasks (e.g. data handling) or reactive maintenance of assets (e.g. water main bursts that could have been predicted if digital pressure monitoring devices were in place).

As described in Section 3.2, there are many other benefits to DWM that could translate into cost efficiencies. Quantifying them monetarily would require advance economic analysis. Ongoing engagement with Council’s Financial Services department will be required to better understand and untap these subsidies.

Developer contributions could also subsidise the project. By driving water supply efficiencies through DWM (e.g. reducing non-revenue water), water systems asset renewals and capacity upgrades will be deferred. DWM benefits will translate to higher levels of service to ratepayers. Council may decide to pass some of the costs to achieve these gains to developers, as value-for-money to the community is increased. Additionally, the cost of supplying and installing DWM for new developments will be passed on to developers, similarly to what is currently done with analogue water meters.

Water access charge increase will be required to sustain the DWM system into the future. It is considered this will happen only once the system is fully stablished (from Year 6 onwards) and ratepayer benefit from the increased levels of service DWM can offer.

Rough estimates indicate that an average annual charge increase between $18 and $40 per rateable water connection could be sufficient to cover remaining project cost. This is after project subsidies via cost savings and developer contributions have been realised, and will depend on the level of external funding and loan borrowing obtained.

BYRON SHIRE COUNCIL

Staff Reports - Infrastructure Services 4.2

Report No. 4.2 Ocean Shores STP Transfer Line Update Report

Directorate: Infrastructure Services

Report Author: Cameron Clark, Manager Utilities

File No: I2025/860

Summary:

Council has resolved to proceed to detailed design for infrastructure to transfer sewage flows from the OSSTP to the Brunswick Valley STP (BVSTP) which will enable ‘load shedding’ to the BVSTP to help relieve the dry weather loading at the OSSTP, particularly during peak holiday seasons or during high wet weather flow conditions and reduce the risk of environmental non-compliance.

Engineering multi criteria analysis and options assessment was undertaken to identify the best location for transfer line. Alignment 2 was chosen as the best route, for minimal environmental, social, cultural, financial, construction and operational requirements through a MCA process (appendix a).

Environmental Planning including Heritage assessments have been undertaken through different alignments, however Council requires final stages of planning and heritage works to be completed for alignment 2 (Approx 6 months), prior to detailed design.

Council staff and field experts recommend alignment two”, as the preferred line utilising HDD construction technology (Appendix a).

Council staff to write to EPA and inform EPA of project update and associated timeline.

RECOMMENDATION:

That the Water and Sewer Advisory Committee notes the report.

Attachments:

1 GHD MCA OSSTP Transfer, E2025/31880 , page 130 ⇩

Report

Background

Council resolved (Res 21-451) to proceed to detailed design for infrastructure to transfer sewage flows from the OSSTP to the Brunswick Valley STP (BVSTP) which will enable ‘load shedding’ to the BVSTP to help relieve the dry weather loading at the OSSTP, particularly during peak holiday seasons or during high wet weather flow conditions and reduce the risk of environmental non-compliance.

On 14 December 2023 council resolved to adopt the WSAC recommendations for council staff to start project initiation for Option 4R- for the partial transfer of sewage flows from the OSSTP to the BVSTP.

The project will involve the acquisition and establishment of a new easement underneath two properties between the OSSTP and the BVSTP,

• As adopted in the council resolution, Option 4R includes minor upgrades at the OSSTP and BVSTP to facilitate the transfer of sewage via the new pipeline and options for construction with and without a wet weather balancing pond.

• The proposed alignment maintains assets within BSC controlled land.

• The project is being monitored by the EPA and project attached to EPA licence.

• Upon completion planning approvals, detailed design and tender documentation will be prepared for construction which will require a range of insurance provisions in accordance with the NSW public Works MW 21 or GC21 form of contract.

Program Timeline

Date	Title / Description
23 Oct 2024	GHD were engaged to undertake an MCA of the proposed pipeline routes between the OSSTP and BVSTP to consider the efficiencies in the pipeline design that may be gained by using HDD technology. Previously the preferred route was selected on the assumption that the primary method of construction would be open trench excavation (OTE)
24 Oct 2024	A site visit was undertaken by key stakeholders from the design team (GHD), the planning consultant and two industry experts in consultation with BSC personnel to inspect the BVSTP, OSSTP and walk the proposed pipeline routes.
12 Nov 2024	Five draft pipeline alignment options were developed for consideration with the MCA (refer attached PDF). These options are based on a combination of OTE and HDD construction methodologies. HDD has been used across difficult terrain and OTE used where terrain is less constrained
26 Nov 2024	MCA matrix developed including the assessment criteria and weightings
3 Dec 2024	Pipeline alignment options finalised in consideration of key stakeholder comments and maps sent to two industry experts to develop indicative cost estimates for the alignments, and to provide details of construction requirements and challenges for input into the MCA
12 Dec 2024	Planning and environmental advice received from consultant incorporated into the MCA document
20 Dec 2024	Indicative pricing advice received from industry experts for input into the MCA Report
6 -20 Feb 2025	Indicative pricing advice and final comments from key stakeholders incorporated into the MCA Report
20 -24 Feb 2025	MCA report and recommendations submitted to the BSC Sewer and Water Management Team for review before being presented to the BSC Executive Team for consideration and approval to proceed.
30 May 2025	Forecast date for the receipt of approval to proceed from the BSC Executive Team

Risk

A Multi Criteria Analysis (MCA) was undertaken of five potential pipeline alignment options. These options are based on a combination of Open Trench Excavation (OTE) and Horizontal Directional Drilling (HDD) construction methodologies. HDD has been used across difficult terrain and OTE used where terrain is less constrained. The risk-based analysis was undertaken in consultation with the planning, heritage and construction specialists

Planning Approvals Update

Minor upgrades of both the OSSTP and the BVSTP are anticipated to be required to address the existing operational issues and process bottlenecks, and the construction of a wet weather storage facility will be required at the BVSTP to cater for receival and balancing of the increased peak wet weather flows. An update on environmental assessments and planning approvals is as follows:

The Environmental and Heritage Planning consultant will be requested to update the Aboriginal cultural heritage assessment with the new approach as follows:

· Undertake the investigations/ consultation required to update the ACHAR with the alternative pipeline route – assumed to be alignment 2.

The biodiversity assessment will also be finalised with the preferred pipeline route and location of the BVSTP balancing pond.

Once the final alignment is approved it is proposed that the approvals process (including Part 5 and REF) would run in parallel with the detailed design.

Heritage

The Aboriginal Cultural Heritage Assessment Report (ACHAR) has progressed, however, further work still required for alignment 2.

Council have assumed that the adopted HDD route and new BVSTP balancing pond site will not impact on cultural heritage. However, assessments are still being carried out.

This is expected to take 14 weeks including the required RAP consultation. Council to arrange the required access to private property and any resident consultation.

Next Steps

1. The Project team proceeding forward with the recommended route alignment and complete the following: -

a. Environmental assessment and

b. Landholder consultation

Once stages a and b are complete, Council will then undertake detailed design prior to going to construction.

Strategic Considerations

Community Strategic Plan and Operational Plan

CSP Objective	CSP Strategy	DP Action	Code	OP Activity
5: Connected Infrastructure	5.5: Provide continuous and sustainable water and sewerage management	5.5.2: Wastewater management - Manage effluent in an ecologically sustainable way that ensures public health and protects and enhances the natural environment	5.5.2.11	Ocean Shores transfer to Brunswick Valley Sewerage Treatment Plant - process elements and transfer pipeline

Financial Considerations

Cost: Design cost estimates as follows:

1. OSSTP upgrade- $9mil minimum upgrade – (design cost $398,000)

2. BVSTP upgrade and augmentation including 20ML wet weather storage facility $16.4mill cost estimate (design cost- $200,000)

3. New HDD pipeline – ($15mil cost estimate) – (Geotech, survey, Design verification, review and optioneering - $185,000).

Note: Cost of design for transfer pipeline of $200,000 is in the budget for next OP/FY.

Consultation and Engagement

Who was consulted?	How did consultation occur? e.g. email, verbal etc	Comments/Feedback
EPA	Updates on project progress has been communicated to the EPA via memos on 10 Sep 2024 and 24 Dec 2024	No formal response received, other than acknowledgement.
Potential effected landholders	Preliminary discussions have been held with potential effected landholders for all MCA options reviewed	Request to meet on site to review the full scope of this project and what is involved in installation and ongoing inspections and maintenance
SEE Environmental Team	Phone and email correspondence	Approved environmental planning and systems process
Water and Sewer Advisory Committee	Report	Ongoing feedback throughout the project lifecycle

BYRON SHIRE COUNCIL

For Information Only 6.1

For Information Only

Report No. 6.1 Status update - Mullumbimby Water Supply Strategy Project

Directorate: Infrastructure Services

Report Author: Pablo Orams, Integrated Water Management Officer

File No: I2025/751

Summary:

This report aims to brief the WSAC on the status of the Mullumbimby Water Supply Strategy project, including updates on:

- Project delivery plan

- Response to previous WSAC meeting’s recommendations

Feedback from the WSAC is welcomed.

Attachments:

1 NSW Gov Business Case Guidelines on a page (TPG24-29), E2025/53961 , page 207 ⇩

2 Minutes 17/04/2025 Water and Sewer Advisory Committee, I2025/491 , page 209 ⇩

3 Minutes 19/07/2024 Water and Sewer Advisory Committee Extraordinary, I2024/1042 , page 215 ⇩

Report

1. Project delivery plan

1.1. Stage 1 – Project methodology development

Following the outcomes of the previous WSAC meeting (17 April 2025), and subsequent refinement of the project concept plan, Council has engaged consultancy firm Natural Capital Economics (NCEconomics) to assist in the development of a robust, best-practice methodology to deliver the desired project outcome (i.e. “provide Council with evidence-based recommendations for deciding on a long-term water supply strategy for Mullumbimby”).

This stage will cost $19,899 and will be completed before the end of June 2025. It will include:

- Task 1 - Development of a decision-making framework that aligns with the NSW Government Business Case Guidelines - TPG24-29 (see a summary of the guidelines in Attachment 1). These provide an established framework to guide policy or investment decisions, and will ensure that Council’s consideration of water supply options for Mullumbimby is aligned with best practice. If external public funding is required (and available), the assessments and outputs from this project can then be easily included into a detailed business case to the NSW Government.

- Task 2 - Audit and gap analysis of previous assessments, including (but not limited to):

o Technical assessments of option development.

o Extent of stakeholder/community engagement.

o Robustness of current and projected water demand assessments.

o Environmental, economic, financial and social impact assessments.

This evaluation will gauge the appropriateness of previous work to feed into the decision-making framework developed in Task 1. This will be supported by engaging with Council staff and, where feasible, with previous consultants, to understand challenges and complexities with previous assessments.

- Task 3 - Identify additional technical assessments based on the outcomes of Task 2. Consideration will be given to appropriate sequencing of these technical assessment to inform the methodology for delivery.

- Task 4 - Develop robust stakeholder engagement strategy that can directly and meaningfully feed into the decision-making process. This may include:

o Surveys to capture specific stakeholder input into multi-criteria analysis.

o Facilitating focus groups and/or workshops to identify key social impacts from options.

o Targeted engagement with a community or stakeholder reference group or other fit-for-purpose deliberative process.

- Task 5 - Consolidate approach and budgeting. This task involves consolidating findings from preceding tasks into a recommended project delivery plan and indicative budget for the next 14-16 months of work.

1.2. Stage 2 – Implementation of decision-making framework

Having developed a robust best-practice methodology and a clear delivery plan, Council will move into Stage 2 of the project, undertaking the necessary technical assessments and stakeholder engagement to feed into the decision-making framework that Council will use to make its final decision.

Completion of Stage 2 is expected by October 2026.

While the cost of Stage 2 is to be defined based on the outcomes of Stage 1, early estimates indicate a budget scope of $150K to $200K.

2. Consideration of recommendations from the WSAC

As per the minutes from the 17 April 2025 WSAC meeting (see Attachment 2), Report No. 4.2, the WSAC provided two recommendations:

“3. That Council keep the WSAC informed of subsequent changes to the project design, including between WSAC meetings.”

“4. That Council consider in the project the investigations previously sought by the WSAC, and recorded in its Minutes for the meeting of 19 July 2024.”

Item 3 is noted. Staff will maintain regular and transparent engagement with the WSAC.

Item 4 has been considered by staff. The “investigations previously sought by the WSAC” are outlined in Item 5 of Report 4.1 of the referred minutes (see Attachment 3), and summarised in the below table with comments from staff for their relevance and adequacy for the project.

WSCA recommendation	Staff comment
*5. [That Council] Proceeds with the investigations previously outlined in Parts 7 and 8 of Resolution 23-120 with some additions in 8b and 8c, namely: 7. [That Council] Investigates a strategy for Mullumbimby’s long term water supply based on the following concept:*
a) Lavertys Gap as the source during flows in excess of environmental requirements;	Noted. This scenario has already been considered in previous investigations. To be further assessed during Task 2 and Task 3 of project Stage 1.
b) water stored off-stream between the source and Mullumbimby;
c) water treated at a new location between the storage and Mullumbimby;
d) water delivered to Mullumbimby and possibly beyond; and	Noted. Investigation will focus on the Mullumbimby system. Commentary on potential spare supply capacity may be provided.
e) maximising demand management, including the harvesting of roof water.	Noted. To be assessed during Task 2 and Task 3 of project Stage 1.
*8. [That Council] Includes in this investigation:*
a) the topography of the terrain between Lavertys Gap and Mullumbimby, to identify potential dam sites;	Noted. While high-level commentary will be provided regarding potential locations for an off-stream storage, detailed topography assessments are not required to develop reasonable cost estimates.
b) the hydrology of Wilsons Creek and its capacity to supply, including (i) seasonality, (ii) establishing environmental flows for future EPA licensing;	Noted. To be assessed during Task 2 and Task 3 of project Stage 1.
c) the impact of climate change on supply and on demand (using up-to-date CC data and methodologies in the pilot phase for local water supply through DPE, and applied in Regional Water Strategies);
d) infrastructure needs including offtake, storage, treatment and linkages to the town’s reservoirs;	Noted. To be assessed during Task 2 and Task 3 of project Stage 1. Detailed design, technical specifications or planning consent materials, beyond those required to develop a reasonable estimate of costs, will not be pursued. The condition of Lavertys Gap weir’s condition is being assessed, monitored and managed in alignment with the Utilities Department’s Asset Management System.
e) environmental assessments for the creation and operation of that infrastructure, including greenhouse gas emissions;
f) assessment of the weir at Lavertys Gap including (i) structural integrity; (ii) means of creating fish passage; and (iii) how this proposal enhances its heritage and preservation; and
g) economic assessment;	Noted.

3. Next steps

Following the completion of Stage 1 of the project, the detailed scope of work for Stage 2 will be presented to the WSAC.

Strategic Considerations

Community Strategic Plan and Operational Plan

CSP Objective

CSP Strategy

DP Action

Code

OP Activity

5: Connected Infrastructure

5.5: Provide continuous and sustainable water and sewerage management

5.5.1: Water supply - Provide a continuous water supply that is maintained in accordance with NSW Health guidelines

5.5.1.20

Report to Council on the future water strategy for Mullumbimby

Venue	Conference Room, Station Street, Mullumbimby
Date	Thursday, 19 June 2025
Time	11:30 AM