This project addressed the removal rate of ammonia by microorganisms and designed a pathogen survey to establish the level of contaminants present within influent water at the Aquifer storage and recovery site at the Aldinga Aquifer.

Honours Thesis completed by Kimberly A. Sieburn in November 2011.

In an earlier project stormwater was collected from an urban environment, treated through electrolysis, injected into and retrieved from an aquifer, and reused for greywater irrigation. This research used the previously established hardware and software for ten months to gather data about operational efficacy, reliability and costs. E. coli, a common indicator of faecal contamination, was barely removed by electrolysis, and other pathogens were not examined, which prevents assessment of water quality or its compliance with the AGWR. 20878 kL stormwater were treated and added to the aquifer, and 5886 kL retrieved for irrigation. Total operational costs were $29344 and the cost of processed water ranged from $0.13 to $0.28 per kL. The purpose-designed software and computerised telemetry was reliable and suitable for upgrading with security features. It was concluded that the system has potential for further development as an alternative to using mains potable water to irrigate open public spaces.