Sewage Treatment System Impact Monitoring Program Volume 1 Data Report 2019-20 Commercial-in-Confidence Sydney Water 1 Smith Street, Parramatta, NSW Australia 2150 PO Box 399 Parramatta NSW 2124 Report version: STSIMP Data Report 2019-20 Volume 1 final © Sydney Water 2020 This work is copyright. It may be reproduced for study, research or training purposes subject to the inclusion of an acknowledgement of the source and no commercial usage or sale. Reproduction for purposes other than those listed requires permission from Sydney Water. Sewage Treatment System Impact Monitoring Program | Vol 1 Data Report 2019-20 Page | i Executive summary Background Sydney Water operates 23 wastewater treatment systems and each system has an Environment Protection Licence (EPL) regulated by the NSW Environment Protection Authority (EPA). Each EPL specifies the minimum performance standards and monitoring that is required. The Sewage Treatment System Impact Monitoring Program (STSIMP) commenced in 2008 to satisfy condition M5.1a of our EPLs. The results are reported to the NSW EPA every year. The STSIMP aims to monitor the environment within Sydney Water’s area of operations to determine general trends in water quality over time, monitor Sydney Water’s performance and to determine where Sydney Water’s contribution to water quality may pose a risk to environmental ecosystems and human health. The format and content of 2019-20 Data Report predominantly follows four earlier reports (2015-16 to 2018-19). Sydney Water’s overall approach to monitoring (design and method) is consistent with the Australian and New Zealand Environment and Conservation Council (ANZECC 2000 and ANZG 2018) guidelines. The STSIMP Data Report 2019-20 has been prepared to satisfy condition M5.1d of the EPLs and to provide a summary of monitoring data collected under the program. It consists of the following two volumes: Volume 1 STSIMP Data Report 2019-20: this is the main volume of the 2019-20 report that provides a summary of all monitoring programs, monitoring methods, data analysis techniques and significant trends and/or exceedances of guidelines or EPL licence limits. It also provides a summary of wastewater overflows. Volume 2 STSIMP Data Report 2019-20 (Appendices): includes all wastewater and environmental monitoring data, data summaries and ten yearly trend plots of all analytes measured under the EPLs. This volume is also supported by multiple electronic appendices of data summaries and raw data. Summary of key indicator trends A summary of EPL limit exceedances together with statistically significant increasing and decreasing trends from across the coastal and inland discharging Wastewater Treatment Plants is provided in Table ES-1. A similar summary across Hawkesbury-Nepean River sites is provided in Table ES-2 based upon ANZECC (2000 or National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC, 2008) guideline values. Sewage Treatment System Impact Monitoring Program | Vol 1 Data Report 2019-20 Page | ii This page has been intentionally left blank The next two pages are designed for A3 printing Sewage Treatment System Impact Monitoring Program | Vol 1 Data Report 2019-20 Page | iii `SewageMonitoring TreatmentImpact Program System Table ES-1 Summary of EPL limit exceedances, together with statistically significant increasing and decreasing trends of coastal and inland discharging WWTPs WWTPs discharging inland and coastal of trends decreasing and increasing significant with statistically together exceedances, limit EPL of Summary Table ES-1 Stormplants (Malabar system) Brooklyn Hornsby West Hornsby Heights RouseHill Castle Hill Riverstone QuakersHill Marys St Richmond NorthRichmond Winmalee Penrith Wallacia Camden West Picton Liverpool Glenfield Fairfield Bombo Shellharbour Wollongong Cronulla Malabar Bondi NorthHead Warriewood Inlandplants Ocean plants WWTPs Legend N Statisticallysignificant increasing trend 2019-20 in Statisticallysignificant in decreasing trend 2019-20 No statisticallytrend 2019-20 insignificant o Analytes=== t r e n d a n a l y s i s c o n d u c t Ammonia e Nutrients d , nitrogen m L L o s Total nitrogen | Vol | 1 Report 2019-20 Data t r e s u l Total phosphorus t s ( ≥ 9 Conventional analytes 0 Carbonaceous % ) BOD b e Chlorine residual l o w (total) m C C e t Faecal coliforms h o d C C L d e Oil and Grease t e c t L L i o Suspended n solids l i m i t EC50 Toxicity Aluminium Arsenic Cadmium C L Chroomium Discharge loadlimit outside EPL the Dischargeconcentrationoutside EPLthe limit Onlyload trend forestimation. monitored analysiscarried out was No Analytesin notfor EPL that particular WWTP the required Cobalt Copper TraceMetals Iron Lead Manganese Mercvury Molybdenum Nickel Selenium Zinc Chlorpyirfos Other chemicals/organics Cyanide Diazinon Hydrogen sulphide Nonyl phenol ethoxylate Pesticides and PCBs Page | 4 Page 4 | This page has been intentionally left blank `Sewage Treatment System Impact Monitoring Program | Vol 1 Data Report 2019-20 Page | 5 `SewageMonitoring TreatmentImpact Program System Legend Table ES-2 Table ES-2 2008) NHMRC 2000 or (ANZECC guidelines with comparison trends and quality water River Hawkesbury-Nepean of Summary Site code Site NB11 NB13 N18 N2202 N26 N3001 NC11A N35 NS04A N39 N42 N44 N48A N51 N57 N67 N75 N92 H 2019-20 medianvalue higherthan the guideline limit Statistically significant deterioratingtrend in 2019-20 Statistically significant improving trend in2019-20 No significant trend Description Berowra CreekOff Square Bay Berowra Creekat Calabash Bay Hawkesbury River Leetsat Vale ColoLower River at Putty Road Hawkesbury River at SackvilleFerry Hawkesbury River Cattaiat SRA CattaiLower Creek Cattai at Road Hawkesbury River at Wilberforce Lower SouthCreek Fitzroy at Bridge Hawkesbury River Freemansat Reach Hawkesbury River Northat Richmond NepeanRiver at Yarramundi Bridge NepeanRiver at SmithRoad NepeanRiver opposite Fitzgeralds Creek NepeanRiver at Penrith Weir NepeanRiver at Wallacia Bridge NepeanRiver at Sharpes Weir NepeanRiver at Maldon Weir | Vol | 1 Report 2019-20 Data Analytes H H H H H H Ammonia nitrogena H H H H H H H H H H H H H H H H a L Oxidised nitrogen * b b a Nutrients 2019-20median value lower the than lower guideline limit NHMRC(2008) amberalert guideline applied ANZECC (2000) guideline applied No guideline applicable to these analytes H H H H H H H H H H H H H H H H H Total nitrogena Filterable total phosphrus* H H H H H H Total phosphorusa H H H H H H H H H H H H H H H Chlorophyll-aa Chlorophyll- Total algal biovolume* Blue-green algal b a biovolume and algae Toxic blue-green algal biobolumeb Toxic blue-green algal countb H H H Conductivitya Physico-chemical analytes Dissolved oxygen* Dissolved oxygen L L saturationa pHa Temperature* L L L L L L L L L L Turbiditya Page | 6 Page 6 | This page has been intentionally left blank `Sewage Treatment System Impact Monitoring Program | Vol 1 Data Report 2019-20 Page | vii Table of contents Executive summary ............................................................................................................................. ii Background ........................................................................................................................................................... ii Summary of key indicator trends ........................................................................................................................ ii Table of contents .............................................................................................................................. viii Figures ................................................................................................................................................ xi Tables ................................................................................................................................................. xii 1 Introduction .................................................................................................................................... 1 1.1 Background .................................................................................................................................................. 1 1.2 Sewage Treatment System Impact Monitoring Program ......................................................................... 1 1.1 Report structure and objectives................................................................................................................. 7 2 Monitoring programs and methods ............................................................................................ 10 2.1 Wastewater discharge volume and characteristics ............................................................................... 10 2.2 Wastewater overflows and leakage ......................................................................................................... 12 2.2.1 Dry weather overflows ......................................................................................................................... 12 2.2.2 Wet weather overflows ........................................................................................................................ 12 2.2.3 Dry weather leakage detection monitoring program ............................................................................ 12 2.3 State of ocean environment ...................................................................................................................... 30 2.3.1 Ocean receiving water ........................................................................................................................