Wastewater

Click through the topics below to learn more about wastewater:

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Wastewater is the water that goes down the drain in our homes and businesses when we flush the toilet, have a shower or wash our clothes. It is not water that washes onto our roads during heavy rain, this is called stormwater. 

Wastewater can contain soap, detergents and human waste. After wastewater goes down the drain it is piped to a wastewater treatment plant where it goes through a number of cleaning processes. The end result is treated wastewater which is returned to the local environment under strict licensing conditions.

Within the Ballina shire we have a recycled water program that treats wastewater to a level that is clean enough to be enough to be reused. 

Click here for more information about our recycled water program and treatment process. 

Treatment plants in Ballina Shire 

We have four wastewater treatment plants in the Ballina Shire and they all operate differently.  

The Lennox Head and Ballina Wastewater Treatment Plants both treat wastewater to produce recycled water that is then supplied back to properties with dual reticulation.  

The Alstonville Wastewater Treatment Plant and Wardell Wastewater Treatment Plant treat wastewater that is then supplied back into the local waterways.  

We collect around 3,000 megalitres of wastewater from around 14,000 homes and businesses every year. This is sent to our wastewater treatment plants where it is treated and cleaned before being reused as recycled water or released back into the environment as treated wastewater. 

The quality of our treated wastewater must strict guidelines. The quality of our treated wastewater and recycled water is monitored closely by the NSW Environment Protection Authority (EPA) and the NSW Office of Water.