Unpacking the value of organics waste in Western Sydney

ISF and partners NSW Circular and Sydney Water recently held a gala launch for research supporting a new waste management initiative in Western Parkland City.

The Upper Creek Advanced Water Recycling Centre, currently in construction at Kemps Creek, poses a unique opportunity for the city to use the latest technology and circular economy principles to manage its organic waste. The centre will be a circular economy hub that treats wastewater, processes organic waste, and produces recycled water for a range of residential, industrial, and agricultural uses.  

The report, Unlocking the value of food waste: a case study of co-digestion in the Western Parkland City, is an exploration of the direct and indirect economic benefits of co-digesting wastewater and organic waste. In it, ISF's research team map out five readily achievable co-digestion scenarios as well as the economic impacts of organic waste collection, processing organic waste (construction and operation), and the outputs (renewable gas and electricity, biogas and biosolids).  

Investment in circular and resilient water management systems will yield social, economic and environmental rewards for all.

– Melita Jazbec, ISF Senior Research Consultant

Sizeable benefits

Dr Melita Jazbec, the report's lead author, says that the research showed that the Upper Creek Advanced Water Recycling Centre would create jobs and support the economy, in addition to its obvious benefits for the environment in emissions reduction. 

As the Western Parkland City grows, approximately 1.5 million tonnes of residential food waste will be generated from 2026 to 2036. With an additional 700,000 tonnes of commercial food waste generated.

The AWRC could divert up to 30,000 tonnes of organic waste from landfills per year by 2030. The biogases from the program used to generate electricity is estimated to save $40 million through electricity generation each year. 

Expanding this program to the whole of Western Parkland City (Liverpool, Riverstone, and St Mary’s) could divert up to 165,000 tonnes of organic waste from landfills per year by 2036. This would reduce annual emissions by 70,000 tonnes and generate enough electricity to power an extra 120,000 homes.  

And the benefits may not stop there. Adam Leto, Executive Director of the Western Sydney Leadership Dialogue suggested that the Upper Creek Advanced Water Recycling Centre would stand as a model for other initiatives, national and international.

He says, "The opportunities to drive innovation, fuel new industries and deliver sustainable environmental and economic outcomes aren't exclusive to Western Sydney. But if we get it right here, the impact can be as profound as anywhere in the world."