$3 Billion Sydney Water Upgrade To End Debris Balls Washing Up On Beaches
Image: Northern Beaches Council/Facebook
Sydney Water is set to spend $3 billion over the next decade in a massive upgrade to one of the country’s largest wastewater systems after hundreds of debris balls washed ashore on beaches in late 2024 and early 2025.
Determined to be a delightful mixture of fats, oils, human hair, soap scum, human faeces, and recreational drugs, the balls baffled Sydneysiders when they were first spotted between Coogee and the Central Coast.
Sydney Water will be staging upgrades over the next ten years to water treatment plants across Glenfield, Liverpool and Fairfield, aiming to reduce the volume of wastewater that needs to be treated and discharged via the Malabar deep ocean outfall, which is where the debris balls had likely originated from.
The Malabar Wastewater Treatment System currently services almost two million people between Fairfield, Campbelltown and Liverpool in the West to Malabar in the east, but has been struggling to keep up with the growing population as it ages.
“For too long, a lack of investment in essential infrastructure in Western Sydney has been a handbrake on our housing goals,” said Water Minister Rose Jackson. “We can’t undo that overnight, but we’re getting on with the job of clearing this backlog.”
“This is a major plan to deliver critical wastewater system upgrades in a sensible, staged way, ensuring that major investments are funded over time and Sydney Water users don’t face sudden bill shock.”
Upgrade a commitment to more resilient systems
Sydney Water will be partnering with the Malabar System Alliance, a grouping of Acciona Construction, Acciona Agua, SMEC, for the first stage of the program, delivering major upgrades to the Glenfield and Liverpool WRRFs.
The work will include refurbishing and expanding primary treatment processes and a new secondary treatment process at Liverpool WRRF, with on-site works to begin in coming months.
In the meantime, Sydney Water is continuing to work with the NSW Environment Protection Authority (EPA) and the independent Wastewater Expert Panel to limit further incidents of debris balls washing ashore, with increased cleaning and inspection of ocean outfall screens, and an expanded education campaign to reduce problematic material such as fats and oils from entering the network.
“Appointing the Malabar System Alliance is a significant step towards improving the long-term performance and resilience of the critical wastewater asset and reducing the increasing strain on the ageing coastal plant,” said Sydney Water CEO Darren Cleary.
“This program of works is a clear demonstration of our commitment to building a more resilient system over the coming decade and to protecting our beaches, which are so important to Sydney’s way of life.”
