The Department of Environment, Land, Water and Planning (DELWP) is looking to a new strategy to access safe drinking water and strengthen the resilience of Melbourne and Geelong’s water grid.
Welcoming the Central and Gippsland Region Sustainable Water Strategy, Minister for Water, Harriet Shing said the 50-year Strategy outlined a pathway to secure the region’s water future.
“Work to deliver the Strategy will include building on successful programs like the Schools Water Efficiency Program, which has helped 1,328 schools save more than 9.9 billion litres of water and cut down their water bills,” Ms Shing said.
“This gives schools technology, specialist advice and curriculum materials to teach kids how to manage and monitor water use,” she said.
“The Strategy prioritises future investment into recycled water and stormwater infrastructure that will be used for non-drinking purposes like industry, agriculture and keeping our sporting fields, parks and gardens green.”
Ms Shing said the Strategy included arrangements to allocate 16 gigalitres of the 3-4 Bench water entitlement in the Latrobe Valley to deliver outcomes for Traditional Owners, the environment and irrigated agriculture.
“The Strategy also introduced a new daily water use target for Melbourne, encouraging households to stick to 150 litres of water per person per day,” the Minister said.
DELWP’s Strategy can be accessed at this PS News link.
