Ocean Protect were proud to be a Gold Sponsor of this year’s franc.sydney event, powered by Stormwater NSW. The theme for the 2024 Conference was ‘Charting the Future from Past Lessons,’ which provided a platform for insightful discussions and knowledge exchange. We were privileged to have several team members actively contribute through presentations and panel discussions.
Ocean Protect’s CEO, Michael Wicks, led the Gold Sponsor Address with a focus on franc discussions on the future. He highlighted that current stormwater practices are stuck in the past, using outdated methods and specifications. Bioretention remains the gold standard for treatment, with over $100 million spent in Local Government Areas each year. Yet, it is almost exclusively sized using software that bases its data from over 15 years ago and designed with outdated specifications, with next to zero validation. Michael shared the various reports, identifying the 80% failure rate of bioretention systems and yet it remains the main selection, questioning the audience, “are you future focused or are we just going through the motions and remaining stuck in the past? Are your WSUD assets sufficiently resilient?” Michael encouraged asset owners to go view their assets and see what condition they are in and seek advice from your peers or your networks on how to improve the implementation of the technology.
Considering the Australian Stormwater industry tends to work in silos, with rare genuine collaboration, Ocean Protect is challenging this narrative, working with a various partner such as Sea Shepherd, Blacktown City Council and CSIRO. We have spearheaded the collaboration of 130 organisations, developing the WSUD Maintenance Compliance Framework, led by Ocean Protect’s Daniel Rider, a rare collaboration in this space. He noted that Ocean Protect have worked really hard, focusing on collaboration, innovation, asking the hard questions and challenging the status quo; putting us at the forefront of the industry. Michael further challenged everyone to strive to do the same, challenging the group to reflect on how diverse their networks are, how much they are feeding back to the industry and what they are learning from others?
In Michael’s second presentation for the day, he discussed the topic ‘PFAS Removal by an Engineered Treatment Train’ highlighting the details of Ocean Protect’s groundbreaking new product, StormFilter PFAS, showcasing how it removes PFAS and other contaminants from water sources. Michael also took part in the Q&A panel of the ‘Innovation – Stormwater Treatment Technology’ stream, along with Senior Water Engineer, Daniel Rhodes, and Dr. Zhaozhi Zheng, who is currently completing his Postdoctoral Research into Water Sensitive Urban Design (WSUD) for stormwater treatment.
Daniel Rider, Water Sensitive Urban Design Specialist for Ocean Protect, presented the topic ‘Solving WSUD Maintenance Compliance’, where he announced the official release of the consultation draft of the WSUD Maintenance Compliance Framework. Daniel declared, “The Framework is now in a 4-month consultation period where it would be great to get feedback from anyone, especially councils, interested in this space. The draft Framework provides a guideline, process maps, mock-up information management system and a lot of other things to help councils operate a WSUD maintenance compliance program. I am looking forward to hearing what everyone thinks of the Framework.” Learn more at wsudcompliance.com.au.
Lachlan Shackcloth-Bertinetti, National Business Development Manager for Ocean Protect, took part in the Q&A Panel entitled ‘Operation and Maintenance of Stormwater Assets’, in the ‘Future Focused – Operation and Maintenance’ stream. Reflecting on his experience at franc.sydney, Lachlan expressed, “I’m grateful to have had the opportunity to attend franc.sydney, hosted by Stormwater NSW. It was an enriching experience, filled with insightful presentations, engaging discussions, and invaluable networking opportunities. The quality of content and the expertise of the speakers were truly impressive, I walked away with a wealth of knowledge and new ideas. Connecting with fellow professionals and industry leaders has been another highlight, and I’m excited about the collaborations that might arise from these new connections.”
Ocean Protect would like to thank Stormwater NSW, including President Dr. Andrew Thomas, who recently participated in the Ocean Protect Podcast (listen to the episode here), as he continues to unite the Stormwater community. We look forward to attending again next year.