The Alice Springs Water Reclamation Plant marks a major shift in sewage treatment and water conservation in Central Australia. It sets innovative environmental standards in waste processing and industrial building design, and offers community awareness programs and landscape research opportunities. The plant is a first stage treatment utilizing DAF (dissolved Air Flotation), chemical dosing and storage tank settling before being pumped to the final stage treatment SAT (Soil Aquifer Treatment) plant located over the original Todd River Artesian basin where potable water will be stored underground for future reuse. Located within the Ilparpa Valley adjacent the existing sewage evaporation ponds, this new facility has sort to maximize passive building design principles to enhance the efficiency of the town’s sewage processing treatment. Integrated architectural building components, along with packaged engineering solutions have been used which exploit building form, solar orientation and natural ventilation techniques to create thermo siphoning opportunities, and transform basic industrial sheds into visually dynamic, highly valued public assets. The exposure of the site, the process plant flow and the transported chemicals handling within have informed design parameters relating to the site access, the facility layout, personnel safety, and the selection of materials and finishes which offer durability and minimal maintenance. The architecture reinforces its industrial context in a poetic and cost effective manner utilizing consistent curved custom orb forms, angled portal frames and rolled pipe to create visual softness and movement, not often associated with this

type of construction. Recycled tires used for earth retaining have been sourced from the adjacent refuse dump. Utilizing the prevailing winds across the evaporation ponds, soft flowing expressive building forms to create efficient air movement and thermal assistance from the stainless steel northern awning, the heat and smells created in the DAF shed are naturally exhausted. The chlorine building is mechanically vented to expel gases and the control tower/testing laboratory has air conditioned environments which achieve required comfort levels. To reduce the overall size and usage times for the air conditioning, the control building is constructed from a combination of thermally efficient building systems. (Bondor wall /ceiling panels, celled twin wall translucent panels and suspended concrete floor slab with operable awning windows) The vented roof acts as a canopy above the enclosed spaces, while the viewing windows have roller door awnings to control the unavoidable low angle western sun and glare. The site planning accommodates the way visitors enter and walk around the complex by partially screening the buildings from the entry so that interpretation of the treatment process is displayed prior to walking the path between the control room and laboratory and gaining an overview. Safety is paramount for visitors who are kept to the perimeter whilst the partial transparent building skins offer a glimpse of the hydraulic services housed within. Stage 1 now sets the parameters for the realization of the remaining planned earth berms and bush tucker / bush medicine plantings in the spring of 2008, storage tank mural screen and planned future waste processing plant.