Sydney Water logo
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State-owned statutory corporation overview | |
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Formed | 1 July 1995 |
Dissolved | Water Board |
Jurisdiction | Greater Metropolitan Sydney, Illawarra and the Blue Mountains |
Headquarters | 1 Smith Street, Parramatta, New South Wales, Australia |
Minister responsible | |
State-owned statutory corporation executives |
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Parent State-owned statutory corporation | Government of New South Wales |
Website | www.sydneywater.com.au |
Sydney Water or formally, Sydney Water Corporation, is a New South Wales Government–owned statutory corporation that provides potable drinking water, wastewater and some stormwater services to Greater Metropolitan Sydney, the Illawarra and the Blue Mountains regions, in the Australian state of New South Wales. Sydney Water has historically held a monopoly over the supply of water within the Sydney region, although legislation has recently been passed to open the market to competition.
The origins of Sydney Water go back to 26 March 1888 when the Metropolitan Water and Sewerage Amendment Act, 1888 (NSW) was enacted and repealed certain sections of the Sydney Corporation Act, 1879 (NSW) relating to water supply and sewerage, thereby transferring the property, powers and obligations from the Municipal Council to the Board of Water Supply and Sewerage.
The forebears of Sydney Water include:
Sydney Water's management received extensive of criticism following the 1998 Sydney water crisis regarding what was believed to be the large scale contamination of Sydney's raw water supply. The supposed contamination was heightened levels of cryptosporidium and giardia in Sydney's Warragamba Dam. This meant the public had to take extra steps in their own homes to ensure tap water was safe to drink. After this event, the Sydney Catchment Authority was created to manage Sydney's dams, reservoirs, raw water and catchment areas. The Chairman of Sydney Water, David Hill resigned ten days after the crisis and denied any responsibility, claiming he was leaving only to concentrate on his political career.