A stormwater recycling plant has been completed which will save up to 726 megalitres of precious drinking water per year for some South Australian residents.

The $3.3 million project has been strongly welcomed by growers in the McLaren Vale area, with the official completion of the McLaren Vale Water Plan announced by the Parliamentary Secretary for the Environment and Urban Water and local member for Kingston, Amanda Rishworth.

At the official launch of the new facility Ms Rishworth said: “Using treated storm-water for irrigation reduces the growers' reliance on the River Murray and makes the most of available water resources, which is important, especially in times of low rainfall and drought... the water available for irrigation through this project would be enough to fill almost 2.5 million hogshead oak wine barrels... local grape and olive growers can now access recycled water supplies from the Christies Beach Waste-water Treatment Plant, improving water security for producers in the region.”

Funding for the project provided one-off payments to eligible irrigators to connect to the recycled water pipeline and paid for half of the licensing fee charged by the Willunga Basin Water Company.

More information on the National Water Security Plan for Cities and Towns program is available from the Department of Environment