• The padlocked town water outlet in its metal shroud - Sydney Water still has the key
This year, in 2026, it’s 30 years since Sydney’s Sustainable House, a 35 minute walk from the Sydney Opera House, disconnected from town water and sewage and installed solar panels.
Over two and half million litres of water and sewage has been absorbed on site. No stormwater has left in those three decades.
• Over 2.5 m litres of water and sewage has been kept on site the last 30 years - no water has left the site. Here’s the ‘leaky well’ being built in 1996 to hold overflow water on the site - a simple design based on ancient Persian wells.
But every fitting, appliance, device is ordinary and may be purchased from local hardware stores. Anyone can do it.
In 1996 the project was unique and a media storm about the project has since subsided into occasional media as other projects have been built and mandated minimum energy and water efficiency building standards made the idea mainstream.
On Sunday 17 May next some 230 homes across Australia will open for tours on what has become a national event, Sustainable House Day. The house will offer tours, too.
• Former NSW Premier Bob Carr shared the celebration - thank you for your leadership, Bob
To celebrate the 30 years of off-grid life a small dinner party was held at the house on Monday 4 May for some of those involved.
• I bought fresh, clean, healthy food from local farmers at Carriageworks Farmers Markets and it was cooked by nearby Cafe Guilia
Bob Carr, who launched the project in 1996, when NSW Premier, was a guest. Bob’s wonderful book, Bring Back Yesterday, honestly discusses private grief and was published this year.
Others present included locals who were part of the project, one of whom proposed a toast to a neighbour who recently died, the poet and writer David Malouf, who used to babysit my young children, an architect, a local bar owner, a local designer, community activists, gardeners, writers and journalists.
I now focus on ending food waste with my Coolseats - they’re a garden bed, with rat proof compost below a seat to sit on, self-watering, and flat-packed for easy assembly.
Having just finished a 12 month trial in 2025 of Coolseats beside the Yarra River with Melbourne City Council the live data being collected by the Council on the use and performance of the design is providing valuable and public data on composting.
Of Coolseats may I say; “Imagine being able to walk out of your apartment, a café, a bar or house and put your food waste - including lemons, some meats - and other once-frowned-on ‘waste’ wrongly said not to be compostable - and to compost it by lifting a seat anyone may sit on, free of smells, rats and, having put the seat back down, just sit there, enjoying life?” They’re in the streets of Chippendale and composting over 400 kg of food waste each week. You can see the benefits the compost brings in the pleaching tree canopy, flowers, herbs and birdsong of our streets.
“Coolseats grow conversations in the street, increase community connections, and make composting convenient and stylish. Go the worms.’
• On the morning of our dinner I walked up to get the best bread (from Sonoma) in Glebe Point Road and was gifted this extraordinary rainbow stretching from horizon to horizon - Earth overwhelmed me in that moment and seemed to say, “Keep going”
Thank you, generous, still abundant Earth - sorry for what we humans are doing to you; hope this helps and we stop harming you while we have time to show you the respect you deserve.
Michael Mobbs, gardener