THE Queensland Government has hailed Singapore as a prime example of the success of introducing recycled sewage to the drinking water supply, but most of the water the island nation derives from recycled sewage is used for industrial and commercial purposes.

The revelation came as it emerged that the Bligh Government was examining ways of reducing flows of hospital wastes to Queensland's sewerage system.

Recycled sewage will comprise between 10 per cent and 25 per cent of the water supply for the 2.6million residents of southeast Queensland after flows to the Wivenhoe Dam from the Western Corridor Recycled Water Project begin early next year.

Singapore Department of Environment and Water communications manager Joy Tan said less than 1 per cent of the city state's drinking supply was NEWater, its term for recycled water. Ms Tan said this would rise to no more than 3 per cent over the next three years.

"The primary purpose of NEWater is to supply industrial and commercial customers in Singapore," Ms Tan said.

"A small percentage of NEWater is also blended with raw water from the reservoirs before undergoing further treatment for supply as drinking water."

Ms Tan said NEWater was meeting more than 15 per cent of Singapore's total water needs, but this was primarily because of industrial water savings.

The Queensland Water Commission website says Singapore has been using recycled water since 2003 "for its drinking and industrial supplies".

The Australian reported yesterday that Queensland Health had no role in approving the Western Corridor project. Nor did Queensland Health know how much hospital waste would be recycled as drinking water after it was dumped into the sewerage system.

The department is assisting the Urban Water Security Research Alliance -- a $50million research project involving the Queensland Government, the CSIRO and two universities -- to determine the level of hospital waste water discharge.

University of Queensland Advanced Water Management Centre head Jurg Keller said the project would examine the feasibility of removing hospital wastes containing pharmaceuticals from discharges to the sewers.

"The objective is to determine if there is merit in possibly collecting and separately treating this waste water to reduce the overall load of these pharmaceuticals in the waste water stream," Professor Keller said.

Solid wastes and the leftovers of liquids administered to patients in hospitals were not discharged into the sewers.

"The only contributions to the sewer system are from human excretion of these pharmaceuticals and chemicals," Professor Keller said. Deputy Premier Paul Lucas said yesterday the Government would not postpone its plan to introduce recycled water to the region's drinking supply in February or March.

(The Australian, 05/11/2008)