Edgeworth Wastewater Treatment Works
Operating as a secondary treatment site, the Edgeworth Wastewater Treatment Works serves the communities of Charlestown, Hillsborough, Cardiff, Kotara, Boolaroo, Speers Point, Glendale, Edgeworth, Barnsley, Teralba, West Wallsend and Killingworth.
It currently treats 14 megalitres per day and can handle wastewater from a population of up to 70,000 people.
Operation
The Edgeworth Wastewater Treatment Works provides secondary treatment of the wastewater and is designed to remove nutrients (nitrogen and phosphorus) and offer some disinfection.
The secondary treatment works as follows:
- The sewage receives screening, de-gritting, flow measurement and odour control at the inlet works.
- Biological treatment is achieved through a Modified Ludzack-Ettinger (MLE) process following by settling in two secondary clarifiers.
- Sludge is wasted from the reactors to the gravity drainage deck where it is thickened before being dewatered through a Belt Filter Press (BFP).
Recycling and reuse
All biosolids produced at the plant are beneficially used for mine site rehabilitation and pasture improvement projects. The dewatered screenings and grit collected is transported off site to landfill.
The nearby Waratah Golf Club is supplied with recycled water from the Edgeworth Wastewater Treatment Works for irrigation. The remainder of the treated effluent is discharged via the Lake Macquarie Crossing to the Belmont ocean outfall.
At Hunter Water, we recycle approximately 5,000 megalitres of effluent per year. Learn more about our recycling and reuse initiative.
Environmental Licence Monitoring
Pollution monitoring data is collected by Hunter Water, as required under the Environment Protection Licences (EPL) issued by the NSW Environment Protection Authority (EPA).