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Going Further for Water Conservation in Farrer
30-July-2010
The Coalition is committed to the responsible conservation of our scarce water resources, Member for Farrer, Sussan Ley, has said today.
“The state of our stressed river systems and the increasing demand on existing water resources from a growing population means we must get smarter with the way that we use this precious recourse.
“All too often we waste or miss-use the water we capture, and, in the case of urban stormwater, we frequently fail to capture it all,” said Ms Ley.
If elected, a Coalition Government will establish a Community Water Conservation Grants Programme, funded by an initial allocation of $100 million.
The program will provide grants on a competitive basis to community organisations, schools, conservation groups and other applicants for speciality conservation projects that will contribute to the capture and reuse of stormwater.
These grants will ensure that there is real action on water that would otherwise run out to sea. The Community Water Conservation Grants Programme will support projects that harvest and purify stormwater so that it can be used in potable water supplies.
Because there is no point capturing stormwater if it cannot be properly used.
“This is very important to an electorate like Farrer,” said Ms Ley.
“More than one third of the electorate is bordered by the Murray River, or has the Darling River flowing through it, and all of the electorate has been affected by drought during the past decade.
“Whether they are residents from areas such as Broken Hill, who are acutely conscious of local water supplies, held in reservoirs and the Menindee Lakes; or whether they are people from the river areas of Corowa, Moama, Wentworth or Wilcannia; these people are all crucially aware of how important it is that we, as a nation, look at ways to save and conserve water supplies,” said Ms Ley.
“This is why, wherever possible, we should use stormwater for purposes that actually reduce the amount of water we would otherwise be taking from our rivers.”
The Coalition will take the National Water Commission with developing a new National Standard for the use of Stormwater in Potable Water Supplies, which will outline the safety requirements to do this, the means by which it can be done and the manner in which it must be tested and verified.
The Coalition will also introduce Water Conservation Targets. These targets for the capture and reuse of stormwater from our major cities will be set by the independent and expert National Water Commission, following consultation with the states.