Sustainability is a critical element in the continued provision of water and wastewater services by North East Water. 

In our business our goal is to?

Deliver water and wastewater services for future generations in partnership with the community and in harmony with the environment.

The key element is ensuring that our decisions take into account impacts on people AND the environment AND the business (Figure 1). 

Figure 1: Sustainability is about recognising the impacts of activities on people, the environment and the economy.

A significant element in our drive towards a more sustainable operating environment in the development and maintenance of constructive and productive relationships with our staff and with our external partners (eg the community, Catchment Management Authorities, Environment Protection Authority, Department of Human Services, Sustainability Victoria etc.)

Rethinking what we do

Sustainability is about changing how we think about what we do. As demonstrated in the Figure 2 (below) this means that we need to STOP thinking about what we do in terms of inputs and outputs (a linear, process based approach) and START thinking in terms of borrowing from the environment and returning the borrowed material after we have finished with it (a closed system approach). 

FROM

(a) Our current approach: Input - Output Thinking

TO

(b) Our sustainable approach - Borrowing and Return Thinking
 

Figure 2: Changing our thinking to be sustainable (a) Input-output thinking compared with (b) a Borrow- Return approach

At North East Water we extract water from the environment, we create an income stream through its utilisation by customers and their subsequent waste streams and we return water to the environment either directly or indirectly through processing.  At each of these critical points we implement strategies to significantly reduce the impacts on the community and the environment and the business.

Integrating sustainability at North East Water

The drivers of sustainability at NEW are a complex mix of policy direction and implementation through Corporate and business planning.  The key element in the integration of sustainability throughout the organisation is a clear understanding the respective roles of Government, the Board, Management and staff.  Figure 6 draws together the respective elements to enable all staff to identify how individual activities contribute to the higher-level strategic goals of the organisation.

Strategic direction

Sustainability is embedded in NEW through the Strategic Intent and the Sustainable Development Policy.  Incorporation of sustainability as a key element at this level provides an unambiguous statement to staff, customers and stakeholders of our commitment to sustainability. 

Leadership - Direction through policy

Policy direction is a key element in our sustainability.  Policy direction is set by the State Government, directed at a strategic level by the Board and implemented by the Management and staff at North East Water.

Accountability - Planning for sustainability

The Executive is ultimately accountable for the sustainable operation of North East Water.  The Corporate Plan and individual Business Unit Plans are the means by which sustainability is incorporated within the organisation.  The planning process enables North East Water to deliver the strategic goals of the organisation through clear and specific every day activities conducted by all staff. 

Responsibility - Implementing sustainable business activities

Implementing sustainable business practices is the responsibility of all staff at North East Water.  Clear and specific directives identified in the planning phase enable all staff to understand how their specific activity links to the broader strategic goals of the organisation.  The strong linkage between every day activities and the strategic goals of the organisation provides a basis for feedback to the higher level processes, thus enhancing continuous improvement.

Building staff capacity

Enhancing staff awareness of the sustainability goals and empowering them to contribute to ongoing sustainability outcomes is critical in the success of this strategy.