The Queensland State Conference was held on 20 and 21 October in Cairns. The two-day event was a huge success, with numerous highlights across the program, including our keynote speakers and the best paper presentation.
Keynote speaker Chris Bulloch, Executive Leader Integrated Solutions at Urban Utilities, shared Urban Utilities' commitments to improving energy efficiency and its increasing role in city-shaping and water security. He was followed by Abriculture’s GudjuGudju, a local tribal ecologist and sacred knowledge holder, and Jenny Lynch, a Western-trained ecologist from Ireland, who discussed their local land and sea conservation efforts.
On day two, delegates heard from Thitichaya (Jia) Poontanasombat, General Manager Business Improvement & Development, MSF Sugar, who shared the sugar industry's innovation journey in Cairns and learning opportunities for the water sector. The final keynote, Gavin Singleton, Project Manager with the Dawul Wuru Aboriginal Corporation, explored cultural water values and how traditional owners can participate in managing urban water quality.
The Best Paper of the conference, sponsored by the University of Queensland, was awarded to Chantal Keane from Urban Utilities, for her paper The 60-Year Journey to the Development of an Australian Flushability Standard.
The judges found Chantal’s presentation an inspiring and interesting exploration of such a hot topic. Delving into the scientific basis of how to determine the flushability of wipes, Chantal was praised for clearly communicating her findings.
The abstract can be found here and the presentation here.
Thank you to our Conference Sponsors Cairns Regional Council, Arup, Eurofins, Veolia, Premise, GHD, Interflow, The University of Queensland, Aqua Analytics and Stantec.
Photos from the two days can be found here.
Chantal being presented with the Best Paper Award.