Pennant Hills Golf Club Secures Water Independence in Landmark NorthConnex Infrastructure Partnership

Pennant Hills Golf Club has officially commissioned an infrastructure project that eliminates its reliance on the municipal town water supply, just over two decades after being named one of the top 50 water users in New South Wales.

Under the project agreement, water that naturally seeps into the NorthConnex tunnel is captured and treated via a reverse osmosis plant built during the tunnel’s construction. Rather than undergoing an expensive remineralisation process prior to standard environmental discharge, approximately 300,000 litres of treated water per day is now pumped directly under Pennant Hills Road via a newly bored horizontal pipeline, connecting straight into the club’s 2.4 million litre storage tank farm.

Commercial and Strategic Dividends

By routing the water to the golf club, NorthWestern Roads Group circumvents the remineralisation costs ordinarily borne by NorthConnex, as the water is blended at the club’s facilities to make it suitable for irrigation.

Thomas Burke, NorthConnex Manager, highlighted the strategic rationale behind the joint venture:

“It made good environmental, community relations and economic sense to work with the club to provide the water for the course.”

“Providing access to the water when there is a clear need and community benefit is the right thing to do,” He said.

For Pennant Hills Golf Club, the incoming supply supplements its existing on-site Water Treatment Plant, which has mined local wastewater via sewer harvesting since 2006 to produce up to 500,000 litres per day. Combined, the two systems insulate the club from rising municipal water tariffs and future drought restrictions, securing the commercial viability of the asset for decades to come.

Industry Recognition

The broader community and corporate sector have heavily praised the initiative. Hornsby Shire Mayor, Warren Wadell, noted the validation of public-private cooperation:

“We like to see examples of cooperation between large business and not-for-profit organisations that benefit the community,” Wadell said.

The strategic success of the “From Tunnel to Turf” program has already yielded silverware for the club’s honour board, with Pennant Hills taking out the prestigious ClubsNSW Sustainable Future award. 

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