Our Services
Our core business is the supply of water, sewerage, trade waste and recycled water services to residential and business customers.
Water Services
Our water network consists of 4,217 kilometres of water mains, which supply more than 80 billion litres of water each year.
We monitor the quality of water to ensure it meets guidelines set by the Department of Human Services. See Water Quality under residential or business customers for more information.
All of the water we supply to customers comes from three large reservoirs managed by Melbourne Water:
- Silvan reservoir is in Melbourne's east and is the heart of the water transfer system. Water from Silvan is transferred to most parts of Melbourne's metropolitan area. Silvan also stores water from the Upper Yarra system and the Thompson River for transfer to Cardina
- Greenvale reservoir is about 20 kilometres north-west of Melbourne and supplies water to the north-western suburbs
- Sugarloaf reservoir uses water pumped from the Yarra River at Yering Gorge and water transferred from Maroondah reservoir via the Maroondah aqueduct.
Sewerage Services
Our sewerage system consists of a network of gravity and vacuum sewers, rising mains, pump stations and emergency relief structures. We have more than 3,400 kilometres of sewer pipes across our service area. This infrastructure is designed to transfer sewage from our customers’ properties to either Melbourne Water's Western Treatment Plant (where most of the sewage goes) or to our Altona Treatment Plant.
Trade Waste
Trade waste is wastewater generated as the result of commercial, trade, experimental or industrial processes and discharged to City West Water’s sewerage system. It may contain chemicals, fats or detergents and is typically wastewater from washing, cleaning or rinsing processes.
Our trade waste management program is aimed at working with our industrial and commercial customers and the community to achieve City West Water’s vision to be a truly sustainable water business. In order to achieve this vision and manage trade waste effectively, we manage risk to:
- protect the health and safety of sewer workers
- protect the integrity of sewerage systems
- protect sewage treatment plan processes
- protect the environment, particularly the receiving environment
- facilitate and provide opportunities for re-use of wastewater and biosolids.
Recycled Water
Our Class A recycled water:
- reduces demand on our water catchments
- helps us save a significant amount of drinking water
- reduces the amount of wastewater discharged to Port Phillip Bay
- provides a safe, alternative water source for gardening, irrigation of public parks, golf courses, car washing and more.
Delivered to our customers via distinctive purple pipes, Class A recycled water is produced by Melbourne Water at its Western Treatment plant.
To meet the increasing demand for recycled water, we have a number of projects in the pipeline, including an Altona recycled water project, stormwater harvesting schemes and a dual supply project that aims to supply recycled water to households in three Wyndham Vale estates.
Cleaner Production
Our Cleaner Production team works in partnership with commercial, industrial and institutional customers to help them save water, cut costs and improve business sustainability by investigating and implementing water and resource efficiency projects. Our team consists of engineers, scientists and consultants who make up to 190 visits a month to major business sites in our area.