As Lady Elliot Island Eco Resort is the second largest bird rookery on the Great Barrier Reef, we are unable to capture rainwater for drinking. To combat this the water supply on Lady Elliot Island is created by a reverse osmosis desalination system converting sea water to pristine clean fresh water. Water can be consumed from ALL taps around the Resort or taps in the rooms.

Originally, the desalination plant produced water at a rate of 14 litres per minute, 24 hours per day, however, after a lot of improvement we now achieve 25 litres per minute which allows all water required to be produced during daylight hours meaning the Islands drinking water is supplied courtesy of the sun!

Water is a precious resource and we ask guests to conserve water where possible to ensure we have enough for everyone, and to preserve of our wonderful environment. Our water conservation measures include:

  • Automatic 3 day laundry service for guests (unless requested)
  • Water efficient appliances, shower heads and taps
  • Linen laundry sent back to the mainland to reduce water consumption the Island.

Our wastewater/grey water is treated to a high level in our new AdvanTex Wastewater Treatment Plant and reused for irrigation of the airstrip and in our Re-Greening Program (no wastewater is discharged to the reef). A MEDLI study has been carried out to ensure our wastewater system complies with current best practice.

As per our commitment to sustainable ecotourism practices, we are no longer selling plastic water bottles on the Island. However, guests can bring reusable bottles or buy one of our Lady Elliot Island Eco Resort Water reusable bottles (Recycled Plastic & Stainless Steel) from the Gift Shop that can be filled from drinking fountains located around the Resort or from taps in the rooms.