Water on tap: the rush to find new sources

Smarter use of our water will lead to significant environmental and economic benefits, according to this Thursday's forum panellists.
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Tuesday, 16 June 2009

Can we better manage our precious water resources and strike a new, green deal for Australia by harvesting, recycling and sourcing new water supplies? Is this enough to get the State out of trouble?

Those questions and others will be discussed by four of Australia's leading environmental thinkers at a public forum at the University of Adelaide this Thursday evening.

The Executive Director of the University's Environment Institute, Professor Mike Young, will chair the session which aims to stimulate public debate on new and alternative ways to use water more efficiently.

"In Australia and around the world, water resources are being used beyond their ability to naturally replenish," Professor Young says. "Communities are struggling to invent new ways to fairly distribute what is now acknowledged as a limited resource."

Titled The Water Rush of the 21st Century, the forum will be jointly presented by the Don Dunstan Foundation and the University's Environment Institute and is the first of a series exploring the idea of a Green New Deal for Australia. Future 'Dunstan Dialogues' will address the issues of energy, biodiversity and social justice.

The other three panellists at this Thursday's public forum are:

• Dr Richard Denniss, Executive Director of the Australia Institute in Canberra;

• Professor Graeme Dandy from the School of Civil, Environmental and Mining Engineering at the University of Adelaide;

• Mr Ross Young, Executive Director of the Water Services Association of Australia

"With the energy and madness reminiscent of the gold rush of the 19th century and the oil rush of the 20th century, today we are seeing a race to capture existing water resources and find new sources," Professor Young says.

Professor Graeme Dandy says the economic benefits of recycling stormwater and wastewater in Australia, along with freeing up water trading in the River Murray, could generate around $1 billion per year, creating up to 9000 new jobs nationally.

"Smarter use of our existing water resources will lead to significant economic and environmental benefits for Australia," he says.

The forum will be held in Union Hall at the University of Adelaide at 6pm on Thursday 18 June. Tickets can be purchased in advance by phoning 8303 3364 or visiting www.mybookingmanager.com/ed

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