Water wise achievements - The Australian National University

New trial helps quench tree thirst at The Australian National University

A new recycled water trial on campus is helping to keep some of the green giants at The Australian National University alive and well.

To ensure that established trees on campus don't succumb to drought stress, grounds staff have begun trucking in 30,000 litre units of a free ActewAGL treated sewage product.

This water is then distributed into a series of 5,000 litre tanks placed near important trees, allowing a gradual watering that penetrates deep into the dry, compacted soil.

"The recycled water that comes from the Lower Molonglo treatment plant is of a very high quality and has been fully treated," explained ANU arborist Jeff Albrecht. "It's the same water that would otherwise be pumped into the Molonglo River to be used for downstream consumption."

Jeff says the University is taking every step to ensure that the recycled water is used safely, including limiting storage times and posting signage.

"Despite the fact that Canberra has received some good summer rainfall this year, this water has not penetrated through the compacted clay soils and grass cover around many of our trees," he says.

"We're confident this trial will help prevent the decline or death of many of our large and valuable trees, while avoiding the need to use potable water. The cost of trucking the water is relatively low considering the value of our trees and the potential costs if we don’t act."

ANU gardeners are also conducting several grass-replacement trials to see how hardier grasses handle life on campus. For example, one of the cool-climate lawns in Union Court has been replaced with couch grass, which uses one fifteenth of the water of its predecessor.

"ANU has made the efficient use of water one of its major environmental goals," explains the University’s Environmental Manager John Sullivan. He says in the current five-year plan of management, ANU committed to reducing its overall water use by 10 per cent by 2008 on a 2002 baseline.

"Over the last five years we’ve exceeded this target substantially, through new approaches to gardening and stormwater management, and through the installation of water-saving technologies in laboratories and halls of residence."

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The information in this fact sheet is regarded by ANU as correct at the time it was written.