NSW Legends of Water 2023

Doug Moorby spent most of his youth in and around Canberra ACT and in various overseas locations. After leaving school in 1971 he was employed as an apprentice Plumber by a Melbourne plumbing company that contracted to Esso-BHP, this led to a transfer to BHP and the addition of a fitting and machining qualification. Various jobs overseas and offshore plus a pair of itchy feet meant Doug traveled and gained extensive experience. This was in the fields of hydraulics, pumping, machinery maintenance and his first introduction to water and wastewater treatment, followed by a brief period working at a NSW Local Water Utility

A career change to the Public Health Sector in the late seventies saw him spend the next 15 years as a NSW Paramedic. A move from direct health care into the world of BioMedical Engineering in 1995 saw his interest in the world of Water and Wastewater rekindled while working on UF Filtration systems associated with dialysis machines. This eventually brought him full circle and back into the world of construction and Local Water and Wastewater Utilities Management. 

In 2009 Doug returned to NSW as the Water and Sewer Engineer at Lachlan Shire Council in Condobolin This was followed by a move to Narromine Shire Council where he has worked as Manager of Utilities since 2013. Doug has been very passionate about his role as Chairman of the Orana Water Utility Alliance and as a member of the Executive Board of the NSW Water Directorate for the last five years.  

He holds Diplomas in Project Management, Local Government Operational Works, Certificates III and IV in Water Industry Operations, Certificates in SCADA Systems Integration, NSW Fluoride Operators accreditation and a NSW Plumbing Supervisors License. He is currently undertaking a Certificate IV in Training and Assessment.  

Grant Leslie literally fell into the water industry in the mid-1980s after a 9-year stint in the Royal Australian Air Force.

His career started in Industrial Water Treatment looking after some of the largest industrial sites in Sydney such as the Carlton United Brewery in Broadway the BTR Rubber plant on Parramatta Rd and the Pulp Paper Mill in Matraville.

In the early 1990’s Trade Waste Policy was introduced in Sydney and all of the industrial customers were in need of compliance sampling and testing, so began the journey.  From there Grant joined an environmental laboratory GM Labs and this business grew to include commissioning the Rouse Hill Woronora and Kembla Grange Water recycling/Filtration plants. GM also provided EPA licence compliance sampling and testing of the ocean discharging treatment plants for Sydney Water which he managed. Next was Ecowise Environmental which ended up providing Hydrological and Macroinvertebrate monitoring of Sydney’s water supply as well as EPA licence compliance monitoring for dust and groundwater for mines in the Hunter Valley.  From there Grant joined the Water Services Association of Australia and was General Manager where he championed water industry training for operators amongst other things. There was a short stint with the AWA as the National Programs and Policy Manager before moving on to his current role as Country Director for Balmoral Group Australia which has been 10 years now.

Grant has also had roles as the National Lead for the AWA Trade Waste Interest Group, NSW Branch President, Member of 5S, NSW Water Professional of the Year 2020.

Non-Member