Fresh water is a precious resource.
Of all the water in the world, only 3% is fresh water and less than 1% of that is available for human use. The rest is frozen glaciers or polar ice caps, or is deep within the earth beyond our reach. Fresh and clean water is essential to our existence, it allows us to produce food and sustain our health. We cook with it, clean with it, bathe in it, maintain our gardens with it and many industries rely on it to manufacture goods and services.
Australia is the driest inhabited continent on earth yet, per capita, we are one of the world’s largest consumers of water. In South Australia, much of our economy is reliant on good quality water. Access to good quality water is essential to all forms of economic activity from tourism through to manufacturing.
Water delivered to Adelaide comes mainly from two sources – the Mt Lofty Ranges Watershed (Adelaide Hills) area from the River Murray. Water from the River Murray is transported through large pipelines and then it travels through the Mt Lofty Watershed to reservoirs.
In regional areas, rural and remote communities rely on a wide variety of water sources including groundwater, small local dams, bores, wells and water piped over hundreds of kilometres in regional pipeline systems.
What can you do?
It is becoming more apparent that increasing demands for water can have detrimental effects to the environment, society and the economy. It is time to become more water efficient by learning to use it more sparingly and by protecting water resources.
There are lots of ways to get involved in caring for our water resources, including:
- Water monitoring
Help keep an eye on your local creek, wetland, estuarine, river or stream by getting involved in a water-monitoring program.
- Revegetate your catchment
Improve water quality and enhance biodiversity by revegetating local creeks, wetlands and water courses.
- Clean up local water resources
Help protect local water resources such as wetlands, estuarines, creeks and rivers by participating in or organizing a clean up day in your local area.
- Adhere to current water restrictions
Water restrictions have been put in place to help ease the pressure on water resources across the state. Much of South Australia is on Level 3 Restrictions with other areas on permanent water conservation levels and the Eyre Peninsula remaining on Level 1 restrictions, introduced December 2002. For more information call the Water Restrictions Hotline on 1800 130 952.
How do we manage water resources?
Water resources management involves balancing the needs of all water users, whilst conserving this precious resource for the future. Healthy, sustainable and well-managed water resources are essential to the future viability of communities, industries and the natural environment.
Water is used for a variety of purposes including domestic water supply, irrigation, industrial use, mining, tourism and sustaining ecosystems. Rural and remote communities rely on water from such sources as groundwater, small local dams, bores, wells and water piped over hundreds of kilometres using the regional pipeline system.
The Government, including the regional Natural Resources Management Boards have the responsibility of managing water effectively, trying to achieve social and economic benefits in a way that is environmentally sustainable.
South Australia has a strong legislative framework for managing water through the Natural Resources Management Act 2004. Some of the water management measures include:
- water prescriptions,
- water restrictions,
- development and implementation of regional NRM plans,
- development and implementation of water allocation plans including extensive community consultation during the preparation of all water plans and water activity permits,
- Review of the condition of the State's natural resources (including water resources).