Learning from Australia’s Continuing Drought
The State of Victoria Plumbing Industry Climate Action Centre in Brunswick is one of the world leaders in training plumbers in new green technologies. Courtesy of the Plumbing Industry Climate Action Centre.
Areas of urban Australia have reduced per-capita daily water use to as low as 34 gallons (130 liters). By comparison the average per-capita water use in California is 135 gallons per day, with a U.S. average of 150 gallons. Australia’s current multi-year drought has impressed a “culture of conservation” on the public. As a result, municipal water demand by the country’s residential customers fell by 37 percent, with some areas seeing reductions as much as 50 percent, during the past five years.
National, state and local agencies responded to water shortages with efficiency retrofits and conservation programs. Private businesses have developed innovative water-saving products; the plumbing industry identified water-saving solutions and initiated training programs; and the plumbing code requires product certifications. At the same time, water agencies have been working to secure new sources of water supply from seawater desalination and urban “sewer mining.”
Drastic reductions in water use require a range of representative programs, including regulatory restrictions and financial incentives for water conservation practices in the non-residential sector. Effective water conservation programs also require public education and technical assistance. This means training the technical resources for water efficiency installations. In February of this year, I visited the State of Victoria Plumbing Industry Climate Action Centre in Brunswick, Victoria, one of the world leaders in training plumbers in new green technologies.
Many U.S. water agencies have successfully implemented similar programs in response to droughts and water shortages. We know that water supply over the next few decades will be significantly affected not only by population growth, but also by global warming. We hope that the U.S. will catch up with Australia and that a similar “culture of water conservation” will wash across the country, preventing future urban water crises.
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