Demand management
Managing urban water demand through the right mix of restrictions, pricing and water efficiency is essential for ensuring healthy, safe and reliable water supplies in times of low water availability.
Water restrictions
Water restrictions are a commonly used tool for managing water demand. Temporary restrictions are used to balance short to mid-term supply and demand, while permanent water conservation measures are implemented for long-term demand management. Work is underway to determine how best to strike the balance between water restrictions and alternative water management tools so that benefits are maximised and economic, social and environmental costs are as low as possible.
Pricing
Best practice water pricing is a key element of national water reform. Through best practice pricing, economically efficient and sustainable use of water resources will be promoted, in turn reducing the demand on water supplies.
Urban water demand management and water reform
With greater water use efficiency, less water will be required on a per capita basis and demand on urban water supplies will also be moderated. The National Water Initiative outlines actions to improve water use efficiency. They are:
- implementation of the Water Efficiency Labelling Scheme (WELS) and regulator compliance activity by 2005, including mandatory labelling and minimum standards for agreed appliances
- development of a 'Smart Water Mark' for household gardens, including garden irrigation equipment, garden designs and plants
- review of the effectiveness of temporary water restrictions and associated public education strategies, and assessment of extension of low-level restrictions as standard practice
- implementation of cost-effective management responses to water supply and discharge system losses including leakage, excess pressure, overflows and other maintenance needs.
Progress
The Commonwealth Water Efficiency Labelling and Standards Act 2005 came into effect on 1 July 2005. All states have now put corresponding legislation in place to ensure that the scheme applies consistently across Australia. Planning is underway to expand the scheme.
The Smart Approved Water Mark (SAWM) accreditation program for products and services that save water outdoors received a funding boost in 2006 through the Australian Government's Water Smart Australia Program. New products and services are being assessed for their suitability to carry the SAWM label.
The National Water Commission is coordinating a national review of temporary water restrictions in larger urban centres (those with over 50 000 connections). This will enable better sharing and comparison of experiences in different states and inform future actions.
Managing water supply and discharge system losses (including leakage, excess pressure, overflows and other maintenance needs) is largely being implemented by the urban water industry. Leakage is reported on an annual basis in the National Performance Reports for major and non-major urban utilities, using the Infrastructure Leakage Index. The National Performance Report also reports against two indicators of water losses. State governments are also implementing management responses to supply and discharge system losses.