MELBOURNE COUNCILS SIGN UP TO BECOME WATER SAVERS
15 July 2004
Twenty Melbourne councils have signed up to a new program that will save up to 800 million litres of water by 2010, the Minister for Water, John Thwaites, announced today.
Mr Thwaites said councils from across Melbourne would each receive up to $10,000 to develop 'Sustainable Water Use Plans' as part of a joint program run by Melbourne Water and the Municipal Association of Victoria (MAV).
"Sustainable Water Use Plans will result in real water savings and allow councils to lead by example when it comes to water conservation," Mr Thwaites said.
"Local government is very well-placed to play a pivotal role in delivering the message that we are all responsible for conserving this precious resource."
Councils involved in the program are: Banyule, Baw Baw, Bayside, Boroondara, Cardinia, Casey, Darebin, Greater Dandenong, Hume, Kingston, Knox, Manningham, Maroondah, Melton, Nillumbik, Stonnington, Whitehorse, Whittlesea and Wyndham.
They will join the City of Melbourne which, with Melbourne Water, successfully developed a pilot Sustainable Water Management Plan in 2002.
In conjunction with Melbourne's government-owned water retailers, councils will examine their water use in areas such as park and garden irrigation, swimming pools and recreational facilities.
"This will allow councils to identify efficiency improvements and alternative supplies to replace drinking water where possible," Mr Thwaites said.
Mr Thwaites pointed to the success of the City of Melbourne's Sustainable Water Management Plan which, in its first year of implementation, helped cut 27 million litres of water from the City's average level of consumption.
Sustainable Water Use Plans provide a straightforward and flexible template that enables councils to conserve water and promote water conservation within their communities.
Under the Bracks Government's Securing Our Water Future Together White Paper on water, the initiative will be extended to regional Victoria.
Mr Thwaites said the participation of councils in innovative water saving projects would help the Victorian Government achieve its target of reducing water consumption by 15 percent by 2010.
Melbourne Water Managing Director Brian Bayley said councils had a big role to play helping conserve Melbourne's water resources.
"Melbourne is in its eighth year of drought, and our water storages are still under 50 per cent full. The development of Sustainable Water Use Plans will build on other council water planning initiatives," he said.
MAV CEO Rob Spence congratulated the councils for showing commitment in the area of water conservation.
"The Sustainable Water Use Plan program complements the leadership local government has shown in best practice stormwater management, water sensitive design and, more recently, septic management."
Also released today was a draft technical manual for water sensitive urban design, titled Water Sensitive Urban Design Engineering Procedures: Stormwater.
Mr Thwaites said the manual, which is now open for public comment for three months, would help developers, the stormwater industry and councils incorporate a best practice approach to urban stormwater management.
"Water sensitive urban design is about the integration of water cycle management into urban planning and design," he said.
"It looks at protecting rivers and creeks, integrating stormwater treatment into the landscape, improving the quality of water draining from urban developments into waterways, reducing stormwater runoff, and adding community value."
The draft manual will be available for comment until 30 September 2004 and is available at wsud.melbournewater.com.au
Melbourne Water project-managed the development of the technical design manual, assisted by government funding through EPA Victoria.