600 megalitre dam at Seaford Heights to bring recycled water to McLaren Vale vines in Adelaide's south

McLaren Vale vineyards will benefit from the extra recycled wastewater that will be diverted from being dumped into Gulf St Vincent.
Image courtesy mclarenvale.info

A 600-megalitre dam built in the southern Adelaide suburb of Seaford Heights would see treated wastewater otherwise destined for the ocean redirected and used to irrigate grapevines in nearby McLaren Vale.

Federal regional development minister Michael McCormack in 2019 announced funding for the dam that would help redirect treated wastewater from the Christies Beach wastewater treatment plant to irrigators. McLaren Vale Community Sustainability Company, a not-for-profit group formed by the region’s irrigators, partnered with Willunga Basin Water Company to deliver the project.

Willunga Basin Water Company contributed $4.8 million to the project, added to the federal government’s $2.5 million.The dam would give additional water required to secure the future of horticulture in McLaren Vale. It also moved further to the  ultimate goal of zero outflow to the Gulf St Vincent, improving the marine environment and increasing opportunities for horticulture.

The dam was the second project in the region to use wastewater from the plant, in Adelaide’s south, to irrigate wine grapes. Treated wastewater from the plant was already pumped through pipes to many growers in the McLaren Vale region.

City of Onkaparinga Mayor Erin Thompson said further similar investment was needed to futureproof the region. Recycled wastewater from wastewater treatment plants could be used to irrigate urban open spaces including reserves, sporting grounds and school ovals across Onkaparinga.

Waterproofing the South project was constructed by the City of Onkaparinga between 2009 and 2014, providing stormwater harvesting and an alternative water supply for the irrigation of open space across the region.