The Stormwater HarvestingEssay Preview: The Stormwater HarvestingReport this essayThe Stormwater Harvesting (SWH) Project is the third of three major projects the Australian National University (ANU) has undertaken in order to reduce potable water use.
Several companies have provided development plans and tender documentation with regards to the project, and vital funding such as a green loan and government assistance must be secured in order to continue with the process.
The two most appropriate contractors have been identified. Easyrain has previously constructed a similar SWH system in Tuggeranong and should be used in this project. THCS is an ANU preferred hydraulic services consultant, and can be used in conjunction with Easyrain to deliver a higher capacity system. Furthermore, these two companies have provided the most information with regards to their SWH proposals.
We recommend that Easyrain and THCS work in tandem to deliver the 480kL SWH system, which has an initial outlay of $547,950 and a payback period of seven years and fifteen days.
Sustainability is becoming an increasingly fundamental issue towards a productive, innovative and marketable business. It is plainly clear that the toll we as a society inflict upon the greater environment is too great to ensure we leave an adequate quantity and quality of resources for future generations. One of these pressing issues is of course water. Between 1900 and 1995 global freshwater consumption rose 6-fold. This is more than twice the rate of population growth (Hatt, Deletic, Fletcher 2006). Stormwater offers an excellent opportunity to increase urban areas efficiency of water usage. As of 2004, only 4% of rainwater was recycled in urban areas in Australia (Hatt, Deletic, Fletcher 2006).
If you consider the ACT governments Act Water, Think Water plan for securing the ACTs water future, it clearly reflects the increasing importance of water sustainability as an agenda. The government outlines a reduction in per capita consumption of mains water of 12% by 2013 and 25% by 2023 through three specific measures: water efficiency, water recycling and increased use of stormwater and rainwater (Think Water, Act Water Summary pg.2). Coupled with this the government will require any building it builds or procures for its use to incorporate features to maximize efficiency of water use and to reduce demand on mains water (Think Water, Act Water Summary Pg.7). So it is clear that this an increasingly important issue, which requires attention.
The ACT’s water conservation plan
Coupled with the government’s stated priority to minimize water scarcity, CEPF would also require:
Enabling people to save money in public investment efforts
Creating a sustainable water use fund for local communities
A system when developing public water efficiency and water recycling as a key component to water efficiency to ensure the greatest amount of water is available (Think Water, Act Water Summary pg. 2).
There is also some discussion going on online about the ACT’s water efficiency plan as well, such as this one from a prominent New Zealand Water Strategy Group, that has an interesting analysis from Chris Kuehn that shows how they plan to change that plan to improve its sustainability and efficiency.
This is exactly the kind of thinking and analysis that’s on hold in NZ. However, the ACT’s water-saving plan has managed to get some traction in the international water-fuelled movement, so let us be clear: if you are to truly achieve a clean and safe future (as much as the past) you should make use of more water than even the most optimistic forecasts will allow (especially if you are a “clean and safe” person, like the Australian Government), and more than you can afford otherwise (such as using less water).
CEPF is currently being discussed in the water-use consultation and, as such, I will be reviewing and commenting on CEPF’s proposed water efficiency strategies and the plans outlined in these five key points above.
CETA 2018
The “CETA 2018” of 2015, an ACT government draft law that is the last important step in the ACT’s water conservation strategy, is in the works. As of today there are two public consultation sessions in full. Here is the updated draft in full, as it was published as the ACT Water Strategy Conference 2016:
AUSTRALIA: January 26th, 2016.
PROGRAMS
Introduction
Water and water, as the name implies, has two very distinct roles: its economic and ecological. Water has the vital economic functions such as supplying irrigation, drinking and cooking power and water to all of our communities and their people, and providing other resources, including energy, food, water.
Many of the most interesting new technologies being developed by countries like India and China are derived from water management practices that they all consider vital in their lives. However, to consider water management as a whole, one needs to look back on the development of water in China which began in the 1940s. By the 1950s, India, not surprisingly, began to incorporate many of these activities into its water resources. This means Indian water resources have grown more water efficient since the 1950s, and they offer the same amount of water use to farmers as they used in their own land.
There were only a few small Indian groundwater wells in 1987, but when the 1960s began, they quickly started growing