Central Coast Council has an extensive water delivery and sewage extraction network. Each extends more than 2,000 kilometres. It also has waste extraction facilities. Find out how the systems perform against Australian and New South Wales legislative guidelines.
Water Supply
Central Coast’s water supply is delivered through 2,240km of mains, 71 reservoir structures and 50 pumping stations.
Bulk raw water for the Central Coast is harvested from Wyong River, Ourimbah Creek, Mooney Creek, Mangrove Creek and a number of groundwater aquifers.
Mangrove Creek Dam is the major raw water storage serving the Central Coast and has a capacity of 190,000ML. This storage is supplemented by Mooney Dam and Mardi Dam, with capacities of 4,600ML and 7,400ML respectively.
Three water treatment plants provide filtered, treated drinking water to Australian Drinking Water Guidelines. Somersby and Mardi Water Treatment Plants are conventional media filtration based water treatment plants. Woy Woy Water Treatment Plant is a membrane based filtration plant from a bore water source.
Somersby and Mardi Water Treatment Plants have similar capacities (140 and 160 megalitres (ML) per day respectively), whilst Woy Woy Water Treatment Plant has a smaller capacity of 5ML per day, and is used as required.
The water network was also previously operated cooperatively by the former Gosford and Wyong Councils, and no significant operational changes have been necessary due to the amalgamation into Central Coast Council.
An agreement exists with Sydney Water for the supply of approximately 67ML of drinking water to residents in the Mooney Mooney area network. An agreement also exists with Hunter Water Corporation, to enable the transfer of treated water (in either direction) between the Council’s water system and the Hunter Water system.
Sewerage operations
Sewage is collected through Central Coast Council’s 2490km network of pipes and 324 pumping stations for treatment at one of eight treatment plants. Most sewage undergoes secondary treatment and is discharged into the ocean at Winne Bay in the south or Norah Head or Wonga Point ocean outfalls in the north.
The balance of secondary treated sewage undergoes a higher degree of treatment to tertiary standard and is delivered as recycled water to school ovals, parks, used on site at the treatment Plant or in the north to golf courses (via a Commercial Agreement), for beneficial non-potable reuse.
The former Wyong and Gosford sewerage systems were developed as stand-alone systems by the former Councils, with no linkages to each other or the Hunter, as exists with water supply. The exception being at Mooney Mooney where sewerage is pumped to Sydney Water’s Brooklyn treatment plant.
Our sewerage plants are:
Bateau Bay Sewerage System (EPA Licence 1942)
- For full monitoring data associated with EPA licence 1942 see the Pollution Monitoring Data.
Toukley Sewerage System (EPA licence 2647)
- For full monitoring data associated with EPA licence 2647 see the Pollution Monitoring Data.
Kincumber and Woy Woy Sewerage System (EPA Licence 1802)
- For full monitoring data associated with EPA licence 1802 see the Pollution Monitoring Data
Environment Protection Licences
Environment Protection Licences (EPLs) are required for a number of activities which have the potential to impact on the environment under the Protection of the Environment Operations Act 1997 (POEO Act).
These licences are issued by the NSW Environment Protection Authority (EPA) to control the impacts of pollution.
Current Environment Protection Licences
Central Coast Council currently holds eight Environment Protection Licences.
| Licence | Premise | Location | Activity | Documents |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 6052 | Kincumber Landfill | Cullens Rd, Kincumber NSW | Waste disposal by application to land | View Licence |
| 6053 | Woy Woy Landfill | Nagari Rd, Woy Woy NSW | Waste disposal by application to land | View Licence |
| 5955 | Buttonderry Waste Management Facility | Hue Hue Rd, Jilliby | Waste disposal by application to land | View Licence |
| 7643 | Waterways of Gosford LGA | Gosford NSW | Application of Herbicides | View Licence |
| 1802 | Kincumber Sewerage Treatment System | Doyle St, Kincumber NSW | Sewerage treatment processing by large plants | View Licence |
| 12170 | Waters of Mangrove Creek Dam & Mooney Dam | Gosford, NSW | Application of algaecides | View Licence |
| 12633 | Mooney Mooney & Cheero Point Sewerage Scheme | Mooney Mooney NSW | Sewerage treatment processing by small plants | View Licence |
| 1942 | Bateau Bay Sewerage System | The Entrance Road, Bateau Bay NSW | Sewerage treatment processing by small plants | View Licence |
| 2647 | Toukley Sewerage System | Wilfred Barrett Drive, Noraville NSW | Sewerage treatment processing by small plants | View Licence |
| 3200 | Tuggerah Lakes and the Tributaries of the Tuggerah lakes, Wyong Shire | The Entrance Channel, NSW | Water-based extractive activity | View Licence |
Council also has a Pesticide Use Notification Procedure for Outdoor Public Places.
Pollution Incident Response Management Plans
Under the Protection of the Environment Operations Act 1997 (POEO Act), licensees are required to prepare and implement Pollution Incident Response Management Plans (PIRMPs). These plans are designed to ensure that pollution incidents are minimised through the identification of risks and the development of planned actions to minimise and manage those risks, and to ensure that emergency response procedures are developed and implemented in the event that an incident occurs.
Plan Objectives:
- That the risks associated with these activities are mitigated, to ensure the protection of workers, the community and the environment.
- That a comprehensive and timely response to all pollution incidents occurs, including the effective communication of the incident to the relevant authorities and those who may be affected by the impacts of the incident.
- Compliance with all legislative requirements.
A public version of council’s PIRMPs can be viewed using the links below:
- Pollution Incident Response Management Plan - Water and Sewer
- Pollution Incident Response Management Plan - Application of Herbicides
- Pollution Incident Response Management Plan - Entrance Channel Dredging
- Pollution Incident Response Management Plan - Buttonderry Waste Management Facility
- Pollution Incident Response Management Plan - Woy Woy Landfill
- Pollution Incident Response Management Plan - Kincumber Landfill
If you suspect a pollution incident has occurred as a result of a council activity, please contact council immediately (24 hours a day, 7 days a week) on 02 4306 7900.
Environmental Assessments
Central Coast Council undertakes a large volume of infrastructure works throughout each year that have the potential to impact upon our local environment. Council is committed to protecting and enhancing our local environment throughout our infrastructure development process and has a robust system to assess potential environmental impacts during the planning phase of these operations and projects. Where significant environmental impacts are identified during the planning phase, a Review of Environmental Factors (REF) is undertaken to identify and evaluate these potential impacts. An REF is used by Council to make informed decisions such as:
- If the impacts are likely to significantly affect the environment,
- Whether or not the activity should proceed, and
- How the activity should be carried out to minimise the impact on the environment.
- Gosford Library Demolition
- Environmental Assessment: Little Jilliby Bridge replacement - February 2023
- Environmental Assessment: Hasting Road, Terrigal - May 2023
- Environmental Assessment: Dredging the Entrance Channel - Royal Haskoning - 2020
- Review of Environmental Factors: Magenta Shared Pathway - August 2021
- Review of Environmental Factors: Landslip Remediation Settlers Rd, Wisemans Ferry CH100-450
- Review of Environmental Factors: Davistown Vacuum Sewer Refurbishment Project
- Review of Environmental Factors: Broadwater Administration Building Demolition
Contaminated Landfill Sites
Central Coast, like many regions across the country, has numerous open space and sporting facilities that are former landfill sites, a legacy from the 1960s and ‘70s.
We closely monitor these sites for possible contamination and health risks; a standard practice for managing historical landfill sites such as these.
During 2018-2019, contamination was found in groundwater and surface water was observed above national contamination guidelines levels at:
- Adcock Park, West Gosford
- Hylton Moore Park, East Gosford
- Frost Reserve, Kincumber
The contamination was from ammonia, per polyfluoroalkyl substances and landfill gases. There is no evidence this contamination is a risk to health or a need to halt sporting activities in these areas.
With the assistance of the NSW Environment Protection Authority, we have developed Voluntary Management Plans for the ongoing monitoring and management of contamination in these areas. These can be viewed at:
Read our frequently asked questions on Remediation for former landfill sites.
Environmental Pollution Monitoring and Reporting
A number of the Environment Protection Licences (EPLs) held by Council require that pollution monitoring data be obtained when discharges to the environment occur.
Note that some of the EPLs held by Council do not require pollution monitoring to be routinely undertaken. Links to pollution monitoring data for these EPLs are therefore not provided.