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The Latest Breaking News from Sydney Water

Behind this door is the huge fatberg that can’t stop depositing poo balls on Sydney’s beaches

Guardian Australia tours problematic Malabar wastewater plant where some accumulated fats, oils and grease can’t be accessed – let alone cleared

The Guardian - AU

Sydney councils fear new datacentres could cause blackouts, block housing and affect locals’ health

Datacentres ‘directly competing’ with possible residential builds near public transport, one council tells NSW inquiry, amid growing concerns

The Guardian - AU

Afternoon Update: clean-up order to tackle Sydney fatberg; Mexico violence after cartel boss killed; and a bear at the Baftas

NSW Environment Protection Authority on Monday said it had issued a pollution reduction program to Sydney Water

The Guardian - AU

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Sydney Water ordered to clean Malabar treatment plant where fatberg is birthing poo balls

Environment watchdog says water corporation is ‘responsible for ensuring it doesn’t pollute our beautiful beaches’

The Guardian - AU

Morning Mail: One Nation’s polling surge; Alex de Minaur exits Australian Open; how Sussan Ley might survive

Pauline Hanson’s party ascendant after Coalition chaos; Carlos Alcaraz overpowers Australian in Melbourne; the battle to expose Sydney Water’s secrets

The Guardian - AU

The 16-month battle to reveal the truth about Sydney Water’s poo balls

After debris balls closed Sydney beaches in October 2024, Guardian Australia reported they could be linked to sewage outfalls. Authorities were less keen to talk

The Guardian - AU

Could Sydney’s creaking sewerage system be linked to the spate of shark attacks?

Experts say dirty waters can attract more sharks – but there are many other factors at play

The Guardian - AU

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Sydney Water blames food outlets for illegally adding to fatberg. But restaurants say ‘if it’s a problem, it’s their problem’

Huge spike in fats, oils and grease going to Malabar treatment plant follows 2017 changes to reporting regime and reduced inspections, critics say

The Guardian - AU

Foul ‘poo balls’ wash up on Australian beaches amid warnings over giant sewer fatberg

Reports suggest a colossal fatberg, potentially equivalent in size to four buses, was trapped inside a deepwater ocean sewer

The Independent UK

New poo balls on Sydney beaches after revelation of huge fatberg stuck in treatment plant

Exclusive: Sydney Water erects sign at Malabar beach near wastewater facility stating ‘do not touch any debris … we are cleaning the area’

The Guardian - AU

Why does Sydney pump sewage into the ocean and put its famous beaches at risk of poo balls?

Experts say Sydney Water should better treat wastewater before sending it offshore at Malabar, Bondi and North Head. The corporation disagrees

The Guardian - AU

Fatberg the size of four buses likely birthed poo balls that closed Sydney beaches – and it can’t be cleared

Exclusive: Secret report suggests fats, oils and grease accumulate in ‘inaccessible dead zone’ at Malabar plant, then dislodge when pumping pressure ‘rapidly increases’

The Guardian - AU

'Bloody good': funding tap turned on by 'poo balls'

The strange sight of balls of sewage repeatedly washing up on iconic beaches has triggered a $3 billion plan lauded by water and tourism experts.

AAP

Should I pour this down the sink? (Probably not, and here’s why)

Ever been about to pour rancid milk down the sink and thought…“Hmm, maybe I shouldn’t…”? What about the tomato passata that’s gone off? Or the water you washed the paint in? Or that pungent oil from a tuna can?

The Conversation

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AAP

Australia's busiest harbour at risk of sewage eruption

Urgent repairs are underway on a leaking pipe running under Sydney Harbour with crews battling to secure the 100-year-old infrastructure.

The Guardian - AU

Thirsty work: how the rise of massive datacentres strains Australia’s drinking water supply

The demand for use in cooling in Sydney alone is expected to exceed the volume of Canberra’s total drinking water within the next decade

The Guardian - AU

Secret report shows likely source of ‘poo balls’ that closed Sydney’s beaches last summer

Exclusive: Fat, oil and grease built up in sewerage pipes before being dislodged by heavy rain and ejected from Malabar outfall

AAP

Water agency didn't properly test for forever chemicals

A major drinking water supplier did not perform proper testing before claiming there were no known hotspots of forever chemicals, an inquiry has found.

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The Guardian - AU

Sydney Water failed to properly test before declaring ‘no known Pfas hotspots’ in catchments, inquiry finds

More attention needs to be given to rapidly evolving issue of contamination of waterways with ‘forever chemicals’, committee’s chair says

Evening Standard

Welsh Water hires former Sydney Water executive as new boss

Dwr Cymru Welsh Water, which supplies water to most of Wales, Deeside and Herefordshire, appointed Roch Cheroux as its new chief executive.

The Guardian - AU

‘No clinical benefit’ to blood test for Pfas, government says, after ‘forever chemicals’ found in Blue Mountains

At least 25 people in the area have paid $500 out of pocket to have the blood test for Pfas, an advocate says

AAP

Residents to pursue class action over 'toxic tap water'

Cancer-causing "forever chemicals" have likely been present in a tourist hotspot's drinking water for decades, a major investigation has found.

The Guardian - AU

Unanswered questions as EPA confirms debris balls on Sydney beaches likely came from sewage plants

NSW environment watchdog investigation finds debris that washed up on Sydney beaches in 2024 ‘consistent with a land-based sewage source’

The Conversation

Tonnes of microplastics infiltrate Australia’s agricultural soils each year, study shows

Compost applied to agricultural soils in Australia each year contains tonnes of microplastics, our research has revealed. These microplastics can harm soil and plant health and eventually enter food crops, potentially posing a risk to humans.

The Guardian - AU

Sydney’s archaic sewerage system a ‘significant’ source of microplastic pollution into the sea

Malabar wastewater plant discharges 5.4bn to 120bn microplastic particles each day, CSIRO report says, prompting calls for more advanced treatment processes

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