Winemaking Practices
Water use and reprocessing
- Water is used in the winery to wash down plant and machinery as well as to clean barrels and tanks.
- Over the last 11 years PLW has used between 1,200 and 1,980 litres per tonne of grapes crushed.
- The CSIRO Sustainable Ecosystems and the University of Sydney study estimates process water, mainly used to wash down equipment at 2,000 litres per tonne of grapes crushed.
- Wastewater from washings, stormwater from designated areas and some waste processing is collected for processing.
- The winery wastewater treatment plant uses a system of screening, aeration and solids removal.
- The by-product of solid pressing is deposited on vacant land to dry and then used as nutrients in the vineyard.
- Caustic washings are removed from the wastewater treatment process to reduce the sodium level in the recovered water. This will benefit the soil when the water is used for irrigation. The caustic washings are sent offsite where the processor recovers the tartrates.
Energy management
- PLW seeks to reduce energy consumption and thus lower energy related emissions and to alleviate overload on electrical transformers and circuits.
- Electricity is the main source of energy with the remainder derived from the combustion of fossil fuels such as natural gas, LPG and diesel.
- Refrigeration is used to control the temperature of juice/wine during production and peak use occurs during the vintage period.
- PLW monitors energy usage for different processes and particular equipment to determine actions to further reduce energy consumption.
Greenhouse emissions
- Electricity, LPG, wine fermentation and transport are the major sources of PLW emissions.
- PLW uses ammonia as the refrigerant and consequently the technology does not require the use of CFC’s and their emission into the atmosphere.
- PLW reports its emissions annually for inclusion in the National Pollutant Index.
- PLW has joined the SAWIA Wine Sector Agreement which will be collecting emission data from participants.
Chemicals
- Chemicals are stored securely in the winery and there are dedicated areas for mixing.
- Operating procedures in place for the use of chemicals and recovery/disposal of spilt chemicals addressed in PLW’s environment contingency plan.
- Separate chemical storage sheds and spray pads on the PLW vineyards.
Working with wine industry & government bodies
- South Australian Environment Protection Authority
- Winery Engineers Association & Interlab Group
- South Australian Wine Industry Association
- SA Water
