Our journey to net zero
We’ve set an ambitious goal: to reach net zero Scope 1 and 2 emissions for the 2025-26 financial year. And we’re proud to say we’re on track.
Tackling emissions is vital to address climate change and support the health and wellbeing of our communities and environment. We’re committed to making our operations as efficient and sustainable as possible as we deliver essential services.
Under the Victorian Government’s Statement of Obligations (Emission Reduction), we’re required to reduce our emissions and report net zero for Scope 1 and 2 by 1 July 2030, and we’re taking action to get there sooner.
What net zero means for us
Being net zero for Scope 1 and 2 emissions means we’ll avoid, reduce and offset the greenhouse gases we produce through our operations and the electricity we use.
We report Scope 1 and 2 emissions in line with the Victorian Government’s Statement of Obligations (Emission Reduction).
- Scope 1 emissions are the direct emissions from the work we do, like treating sewage and operating our vehicle fleet.
- Scope 2 emissions are the indirect emissions from the electricity we use to run our sites and services.
We’re on track to report net zero Scope 1 and 2 emissions from 1 July 2025, for the 2025-26 financial year, 4 years earlier than obligated.
How we’re reaching net zero
We’ll achieve net zero by:
- Improving the way we work to avoid and reduce emissions.
- Using 100% renewable electricity from 1 July 2025.
- Transitioning to a zero-emissions fleet, switching from petrol and diesel to fully electric vehicles.
- Investing in high integrity Victorian-based carbon offset projects.
We’ll be clear and open about how we get to net zero, and we’ll share our progress along the way.
We are also turning our attention to our Scope 3 emissions – those produced by our suppliers, people and partners. Our aim is to play a role to help reduce these emissions by 67% by 30 June 2030 from a 2023-24 baseline.
Key ways we're working to net zero
Working smarter to avoid and reduce emissions
We’re avoiding and reducing emissions by developing smarter, more efficient ways to deliver our services.
This includes upgrading our equipment to be energy efficient and simplifying how we supply water and treat sewage. We’re also reducing emissions in construction by using low-impact materials and building only what’s needed.
Powering our operations with 100% renewable electricity
From July 2025, we’ll be powered by 100% renewable electricity. That’s electricity generated from the sun, wind and even food waste, helping us reduce our reliance on fossil fuels.
We’re doing this by producing our own renewable electricity through solar panels at our head office and treatment plant sites, and through our innovative food waste to energy facilities. And we’ll purchase the rest we need from sources like Zero Emissions Water, which is a collective of 12 Victorian water corporations who are working together to reduce their emissions.
We’ll continue to use small amounts of diesel and gas where needed, like in emergency generators. We’ll fully offset those emissions to stay net zero.
Driving down emissions on the road
We’re making the transition to a zero emissions fleet. From July 2025, we’ll only buy fully electric passenger cars.
We’ll switch existing hybrid, petrol and diesel sedans and SUVs to electric options when they’re due to be replaced - usually when they’re 4-5 years old.
We won’t stop there. We’re also assessing the operational fleet vehicles used by our maintenance teams to carry out essential services on the road and at our sites.
When they need to be replaced, we’ll choose an electric option over petrol or diesel if there’s one that can do the same job at an affordable price.
We consider cost to make sure we’re making smart, responsible decisions with our spending. That means choosing an electric vehicle when it’s a good fit and good value.
Investing in high integrity carbon offset projects
Throughout the water industry, some emissions - such as from sewage treatment - are hard to eliminate entirely. These are called residual emissions.
We’re taking responsibility for residual emissions. That’s why part of journey to net zero includes investing in high integrity carbon offset projects right here in Victoria. Projects that avoid emissions or remove carbon from the atmosphere, like reducing waste to landfill through alternative waste treatment or planting new trees.
What makes them high integrity? They’re registered under the Australian Government’s Australian Carbon Credit Scheme (formerly Emissions Reduction Fund). These generate regulated Australian Carbon Credit Units that are tracked in a national registry and can only be used once for offsetting.
This means you can trust that the offsets we use to balance our residual, hard-to-eliminate emissions are real and measurable.
Learn more
We’re committed to taking positive action and to keeping you informed about how we’ll do it. We will provide more information here throughout 2025-26.
Frequently Asked Questions
How are you avoiding and reducing emissions?
We’re avoiding emissions by preventing them from being created in the first place.
- Redesigning processes to eliminate unnecessary activities.
- Revising design principles to specify efficient equipment and facilities.
- Reviewing operations to optimise for efficiency.
We’re reducing emissions by minimising what we produce from necessary activities.
- Improving energy efficiency in pumping, treatment and operations.
- Delivering process changes to reduce direct emissions.
- Reducing waste in construction (Scope 3 emissions).
What kinds of offset projects have you invested in?
We’re investing in high integrity offset projects that are registered under the Australian Government’s Australian Carbon Credit Scheme (formerly Emissions Reduction Fund). These projects generate regulated Australian Carbon Credit Units that are tracked in a national registry and can only be used once for offsetting.
We are directly investing in Victorian offset projects like new environmental plantings at our Upper Yarra Treatment Plant and our food waste to energy facility in Lilydale.
Where does your renewable electricity come from?
We generate our own renewable electricity through:
- Solar panels at our sites - our ‘solar car park’ at Mitcham generates about 30% of the electricity we need for our head office.
- A food waste to energy facility at our Aurora Treatment Plant in Wollert, which powers the facility, the co-located sewage treatment plant and provides energy back to the grid.
We’re opening a second food waste to energy facility on land we own next to our Lilydale Treatment Plant in 2025.
We also purchase renewable electricity generated by power companies in Victoria, such as our collaboration with other water corporations to purchase from the Kiamal Solar Farm through Zero Emissions Water. The amount varies from year to year.
What are your emissions baselines?
Our emissions baseline is the average annual emissions for the 5-year period from 1 July 2011 to 30 July 2016 calculated in tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent emissions (t CO2-e). This means our total Scope 1 and Scope 2 emissions during that period are divided by 5, equating to an emissions baseline of 32,004 t CO2-e.
In the financial year 2023-24 we revised our Scope 3 emissions inventory to align with the GHG protocol and industry standards. We have set the financial year 2023-24 as our baseline year for Scope 3 emissions of 186,979 t CO2-e.