TO CLIMATE-PROOF SYDNEY MAJOR INCREASE IN WATER RECYCLING NEEDED
Media Release 31 January, 2007
To climate-proof Sydney major increase in water recycling needed
Large scale water recycling and major incentives for water saving devices in homes must be fast tracked if Sydney is to avoid a deepening water supply crisis in future decades, Clean Up Australia Chairman Ian Kiernan said today following the release of a CSIRO climate change study.
³NSW only has a 10-year plan for Sydney¹s water supply but the dramatic impacts of climate change demand a plan for the next century and even beyond.
³While the government¹s aim is to lift recycling rates from 15 to 70 billion litres, in a decade Sydney will still be dumping nearly as much water as it consumes into the ocean, which means hundreds of billions of litres of wasted water that could be reused.
³Large scale recycling projects must be fast tracked if we are to climate-proof Sydney and NSW. Supplying treated water for drinking involves proven technologies that produce water cleaner than what Sydneysiders drink now and must be a part of planning to meet the looming future crisis.²
Mr Kiernan said the community had already demonstrated its willingness to save water but would become even more water-smart if rebates for rainwater tanks and greywater systems in homes were increased.
A Newspoll study commissioned by Clean Up Australia in December last year found 91 per cent of people in NSW want a significant increase in rebates on rainwater tanks to help reduce pressure on drinking water supplies.
Mr Kiernan said desalination is an expensive option that would also produce harmful greenhouse gas emissions.
³At a time when action on climate change is critical, building this type of polluting technology would be irresponsible.²
Further enquiries: Paul Sheridan, 0410 516 656.