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Email info@smaleconsulting.com.au

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Drinking Water Quality and ADWG Support

Service

Drinking water risk assessments, ADWG support and water quality verification for remote and high-risk operations.

Safe drinking water is the goal, not just a compliant sample result. The Australian Drinking Water Guidelines and public health legislation give that a framework; SCG helps you meet the intent behind them, not just the paperwork.

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SCG supports clients to design, improve and review drinking water management systems, risk assessments and operational controls. Where independent confirmation is required, SCG also provides audits, inspections and evidence-based reporting suitable for compliance, due diligence and scrutiny.

Safe drinking water is achieved through control of system risk — not reliance on end-point sampling.

What we do

Capabilities

  • ADWG-aligned drinking water risk assessments and Water Quality Risk Management Plans
  • Drinking water quality audits, inspections and compliance reviews
  • Legionella risk reviews and verification of control effectiveness
  • Remote camp and accommodation village water quality programs
  • Sampling program design, lab liaison and chain-of-custody support
  • Incident and outbreak response, including verification, evidence capture and defensible reporting

How we deliver

Our approach

Quanti-Tray incubation for coliform and E. coli field testing
Quanti-Tray incubation for coliform and E. coli field testing.

ADWG support, risk management and system uplift

  • Water Quality Risk Management Plans, risk assessments and supporting procedures aligned with the Australian Drinking Water Guidelines (ADWG) and, where relevant, IATA requirements.
  • Monitoring program design, inspection regimes and corrective action governance, including targeted uplift plans where control gaps or recurring issues are identified.
  • Management system simplification and technical writing to remove duplication and reduce administrative burden in water quality programs.
  • Digital water quality workflows, remote monitoring support and evidence capture arrangements suited to dispersed sites, accommodation villages and remote camp operations.

Independent review, audit and verification

  • Independent drinking water risk assessments, water quality audits and ADWG-aligned reviews.
  • Legionella risk management reviews and verification of control effectiveness for high-risk premises.
  • Compliance inspections and internal audit support for remote and complex water supplies, including camps, accommodation villages, aviation environments and other high-risk settings.
  • Field sampling, testing coordination, lab liaison and chain-of-custody support, including practical programs for remote camp water supplies.
  • Incident and outbreak response support, including verification, evidence capture and defensible reporting.

Where we work

Sectors

SCG consultant collecting potable water samples at a tanker sampling point
SCG consultant collecting potable water samples at a tanker sampling point.
Remote mining accommodation camps and villagesAviation and airport operations, including IATA-aligned programsMarine and superyacht operationsDefence and government estatesHealthcare and critical-service facilitiesConstruction and infrastructure projectsHospitality, accommodation and decentralised supplies

Particular expertise is applied in remote and decentralised water systems, where storage integrity, disinfection reliability, contractor interfaces and site conditions require practical solutions that operate within operating realities.

Outputs you receive

What you receive

  • ADWG-aligned risk assessment reports with prioritised findings
  • Drinking water management plans, procedures and monitoring programs
  • Audit and inspection reports with traceable evidence
  • Corrective action plans and improvement registers
  • Advisory reports suitable for regulator engagement, procurement due diligence and executive decision-making

Where inspection activities fall within SCG’s accredited scope, reports may be issued in accordance with ISO/IEC 17020 requirements.

Why SCG

How we work

  • Independent and impartial, with no vendor or treatment-product bias
  • NATA-accredited inspection body (ISO/IEC 17020) within defined scope
  • Specialist experience in remote and decentralised water systems
  • Water quality reports structured for ADWG compliance defence, regulator engagement and duty of care demonstration — suitable for remote camp operators, airlines and defence facilities
  • Direct access to senior practitioners, with no handoff layers
Combined ilac-MRA and NATA accreditation mark

Accredited for compliance with ISO/IEC 17020. Smale Consulting Group’s detailed scope of accreditation is available here. Accreditation No. 20913. More about our accreditations.

In their words

What clients say

“SCG has supported remote and mobile operations for more than 10 years, providing practical and flexible support across food safety, water quality, and WHS. The approach reflects strong regulatory understanding and is effectively applied in complex and remote environments.”

CEO – National Mobile Camps

More clients and testimonials →

Related work

See this work in practice

De-identified examples of SCG’s drinking water quality engagements, each describing the sector, the scope and what was delivered.

Our work: Drinking water quality case studies →

Standards and accreditation

Australian Drinking Water Guidelines · IATA operations and infrastructure · NATA · Global ACI

FAQ

Common questions

Can SCG support remote camp and accommodation village water quality?
Yes. Support includes ADWG-aligned risk assessments, management plan review, onsite inspections, sampling program design, incident or outbreak response, and improvement actions suited to remote operating constraints. SCG has extensive experience in settings where treatment performance, storage integrity, sampling logistics and response capability differ significantly from urban facilities.
What is included in a drinking water risk assessment?
A drinking water risk assessment typically includes definition of the supply boundary and intended use, identification of hazards and failure modes, review of objective evidence (monitoring, maintenance, inspections and incident history), site verification, and a report with risk-prioritised findings. Evidence traceability is provided where due diligence or regulator engagement requires it.
How is an ADWG-aligned audit different from water sampling and testing?
Sampling and testing provide results at a point in time. An ADWG-aligned audit assesses whether the management system and operational controls (treatment, storage, monitoring, corrective action and governance) are designed and implemented to keep water safe over time. Many organisations use both: testing for verification data, and audits to confirm the system and controls are sound.
How does SCG avoid “paper safe” outcomes in water quality programs?
SCG focuses on objective evidence of how controls operate at the point of use, including monitoring quality, calibration, treatment performance, inspection findings and corrective action closure, rather than documentation volume alone. Where plans are over-complicated, requirements are simplified so that critical controls are clearer and easier to verify.
Does SCG support Legionella risk management for high-risk premises?
Yes. SCG reviews and verifies Legionella control measures, including system mapping, temperature control, flushing and maintenance regimes, monitoring plans, escalation criteria and corrective action governance. Outputs are prepared as defensible evidence for compliance and stakeholder scrutiny.
What are common risk drivers for remote and high-risk water supplies?
Common drivers include variable source water quality, storage and distribution integrity, disinfection reliability, contractor or operator handover issues, intermittent use, limited redundancy, delayed resupply and inconsistent monitoring. In remote camps, these risks are amplified by workforce turnover, environmental conditions and logistics constraints.
Are SCG reports suitable for regulatory use?
Reports are structured to be evidence-based and suitable for regulatory engagement, subject to scope and client requirements. Where activities fall within SCG’s accredited scope, reports may be issued in accordance with ISO/IEC 17020 requirements.

Where the supply serves a remote camp or accommodation village, the chain runs from bore or tanker through on-site storage and treatment, and each link is owned by someone different.

Not sure where to start? Let’s talk.

Send a scope, or book a short call. We will tell you plainly what an engagement would involve and what it would cost.

Book a free scoping callTalk to a water quality specialist