How long does the wastewater stay in the aquifer before it is used?
This depends on how the scheme is arranged, including which aquifer it is planned to recharge and where, when and for what purpose extraction is proposed. Recycled water could stay in the aquifer for as little as two months if its purpose is purely for lawn irrigation. Depending on the method of aquifer recharge, the Department of Health requirements for storage in the aquifer could be different. As infiltration through soil provides an effective filtering system, if recycled water is recharged by infiltration then the time required in the aquifer is likely to be less than if water is injected via bores into a saturated part of the aquifer.
