Minister McGurk on the mission for better water security

Western Australia is an unusual state, with much of the population concentrated in a small corner. That has created many water security challenges, and Minister McGurk is willing to challenge the status quo.

Western Australia is the second-largest subdivision in the world, behind the Sakha Republic in eastern Russia. With a diverse range of climates, from tropical conditions in the north to vast deserts in the interior and a Mediterranean environment through the most populated areas, managing water issues for the state is an enormous challenge.

As the Minister for Training and Workforce Development, Water, and Industrial Relations, Simone McGurk has a heavy workload. However, as the Member of Fremantle, environmental and water security issues have always been close to her heart.

“In Western Australia, now more than ever, we have to adapt and innovate how we source and supply water,” she said. “I’m honoured to play a part in ensuring our water resources and use are sustainable for future generations.”

Reflecting on her childhood, McGurk was made incredibly aware of the importance of saving water. Western Australians have long taken the idea of being waterwise seriously.

“Four-minute showers and watering days are measures ingrained in the public consciousness,” McGurk said. “No doubt, how we save water and adapt will continue to evolve, which is both challenging and exciting. Today, Western Australia is a global leader in developing climate-resilient water sources such as desalination and purified recycled water.”

Even her seat of Fremantle is committed to environmental causes. In her inaugural speech to the Western Australian Parliament, McGurk said that the seat’s rebellious traditions have manifested into a deep concern for the environment, a preparedness to take action, and a willingness to break new ground to ensure that residents live sustainably.

Adjusting for a drier climate

Perth is not noted as a hotbed for wet weather, and according to Water Corporation, Perth received 556.8 millimetres of rain through to the end of September 2024, just over 70 per cent of the long-term average. More concerningly, the six months to March 2024 saw just under 22 millimetres of rain fill gauges across the city – the driest six-month period on record. McGurk and the Western Australian Government are working to ensure water is available for all citizens.

“The impacts of climate change are always front of mind in the water portfolio, and ensuring water security for a growing population in the face of declining rainfall remains both a challenge and an opportunity,” she said.

ACCIONA and Jacobs will build Perth’s third large-scale seawater desalination plant in the city’s northern suburbs. It will further ensure communities across Perth and regional areas have access to secure water supplies long into the future.

“The Alkimos Seawater Desalination Plant (ASDP) will be delivered in two 50-billion-litre-a-year stages, with the first stage to be commissioned in 2028,” said McGurk. “We have already secured environmental and development approval, awarded the contract to design, build and operate the plant, and began preparing the site for construction The ASDP is a significant project to secure future water supplies for our growing state. More than 2.5 million Western Australians receive drinking water through the Integrated Water Supply Scheme, and this project will help ensure long-term water security while alleviating demand on precious groundwater sources in Perth’s north.”

Supporting Indigenous Australians

According to the 2021 Census, Western Australia has the third-highest Indigenous Australian population, with just over 100,000 residents. While many reside in Perth, about 12,000 people live in more than 200 remote Aboriginal communities throughout Western Australia. Another 3,000 Aboriginal people live in 37 town-based communities. The most remote and town-based communities are in the Kimberley region, with others in the Pilbara, Goldfields, and Mid-West-Gascoyne regions.

These rural and remote communities lack the high-quality water services many Western Australians are accustomed to. That’s why, in July 2023, Water Corporation assumed responsibility for water and wastewater services for 137 Aboriginal communities in remote areas of WA.

“Over the next decade, Water Corporation will partner with communities to deliver access to reliable drinking water that meets Australian Drinking Water Guidelines and wastewater services that meet or exceed relevant standards under the National Agreement on Closing the Gap.”

In addition, since 2019, the Aboriginal Water and Environment Advisory Group has been in place. It consists of Aboriginal representatives from across the State who provide valuable guidance to the State Government’s Department of Water and Environmental Regulation (DWER) on policies and projects related to managing and regulating the State’s environment and water resources.

Watering the Wheatbelt

Water security remains an ongoing concern for the dry agricultural areas of Western Australia. It is rare for these communities to get more than 600 millimetres of rain for a whole year.

“Through DWER’s Community Water Supplies Partnerships program, grants of up to $100,000 are available to support planning and establishment of reliable non-potable water supplies to meet emergency farmland and firefighting water needs while reducing dependence on scheme water,” said McGurk. “We recently announced a $1.5 million expansion of the program to support more local government areas in our southwest and great southern regions.”

Supporting south-west waterways

Many programs seek to provide better water outcomes for the people of Western Australia. McGurk believes that the State Government’s Healthy Estuaries WA program is successfully restoring and protecting the health of at-risk estuaries in the South West.

“Estuaries are dynamic and highly important for our aquatic life and birds,” she said. “They also support many community values and activities such as fisheries, tourism and recreation. DWER is implementing a range of innovative strategies that will address water quality issues in these precious environments – collaborating with farmers, catchment groups and the community. One example of this innovation is the Healthy Estuaries fertiliser management program, which is helping boost waterway health and farm profitability. Over 1,000 farmers across South West WA have participated in this program since 2016, and a record number of farms have participated in 2024.”

Farms participating in the program this year have been estimated to have reduced the amount of phosphorus applied to their farms by 668,000 kilograms. Those farmers have also saved more than three million dollars if they apply fertiliser based on their soil test results. Carefully managing nutrient inputs on their farms will ultimately improve the health of our beautiful estuaries, which everyone in the community can enjoy.

Resilience and sustainability

Water Corporation manages nearly 35,000 kilometres of water mains across 2.6 million square kilometres of Western Australia, making it the largest water utility in the world in terms of geographical service area. From Kununurra in the north to Esperance in the south, WA’s climate and landscape vary significantly from region to region. This poses an array of challenges when it comes to sourcing and supplying water in the most sustainable way possible.

“In southern areas of WA, for example, reduced rainfall due to climate change continues to impact streamflow to surface water dams,” McGurk said. “To combat this and help ensure long-term water security, Water Corporation is progressing investigations into climate-resilient water sources such as desalination. This happens in metropolitan Perth and some regional locations where new source options are assessed as part of long-term planning.”

In some areas previously reliant on surface water from dams, communities are connected to larger regional supply schemes. In Denmark, a new $25 million, 43-kilometre pipeline has been constructed in response to years of declining rainfall. The pipeline connects Denmark to the Lower Great Southern Towns Water Supply Scheme, ensuring the town is no longer solely reliant on its nearest surface water source.

A waterwise society

Driving water efficiency through support to households, businesses, industry, and government is a crucial pillar of water source planning. Water Corporation partners with various water users to run targeted water efficiency programs that save billions of litres of precious water annually.

“One such initiative is the Waterwise Business Program,” McGurk said. “It has saved an estimated 135 billion litres of water since 2007 by helping businesses implement water-efficiency measures. Similarly, 48 local governments state-wide now participate in the Waterwise Councils program, 25 land developments are endorsed through the Waterwise Development Program, and about 1.5 billion litres has been saved through the Waterwise Aquatic Centre Program.”

She noted domestic water use continues to fall through waterwise education and support. From 2003 to 2022, average metropolitan water use per person decreased from 185,000 to 130,000 litres per year—a reduction of almost 30 per cent.

“In WA, waterwise education begins at school,” she said. “For more than 25 years, the Waterwise Schools Program has helped engrain waterwise behaviours in students of all ages. In 2021-22, the program reached almost 30,000 children state-wide, and by 2030, we aim to take the waterwise message to 50,000 WA school children each year.”

The Waterwise Perth Action Plan 2019 was another key initiative. It is the first of Western Australia’s successive plans to transition Perth (Boorloo) and Peel (Bindjareb) to leading waterwise communities by 2030.

“Following the success of the initial Plan, implementation of the Kep Kep Katitjin – Gabi Kaadadjan Waterwise Perth action plan 2 is well underway,” McGurk said. “The plans have delivered great outcomes, including 179,000 waterwise plantings that are cooling our suburbs. At least 12 billion litres of water has been saved through retrofitting public housing, helping households adapt to climate change and businesses and industries improving their water use practices.”

Groundwater management

To ensure water resources meet the community’s needs, ecosystems, and economic development, DWER is also managing surface and groundwater resources to support water supplies for residential, commercial, and industrial uses. Water allocation planning tackles this by setting allocation limits for water resources – the amount of water that can be sustainably taken without unacceptable environmental impacts.

“In June 2022, DWER released the Gnangara groundwater allocation plan,” McGurk said. “The Gnangara groundwater allocation plan sets out how we will manage the Gnangara groundwater system – Perth’s largest and most important natural water resource. The Gnangara Plan is the first groundwater plan in Western Australia that will actively rebalance groundwater use across all sectors in response to climate change.”

Water Corporation will reduce its baseline abstraction by 27 per cent, while water entitlements for most other licensed groundwater users will be reduced by 10 per cent. These entitlement reductions will come into effect from 2028.

“To support implementing the Gnangara groundwater allocation plan, the State Government has funded the Gnangara Waterwise Councils Grants Program. Nine eligible local governments will receive a share of $4 million in funding to help reduce their groundwater use. This funding will support the redevelopment of parks to include waterwise principles and create resilient open spaces, increased tree cover, upgraded irrigation systems, installed weather stations and smart irrigation control systems, and stormwater harvesting. Projects will also look at the potential for wastewater reuse as alternative water sources.”

The future of water security in WA

Given the many challenges and opportunities facing McGurk in her portfolio, she has a key focus on strengthening water security and preserving essential water resources in the face of climate change’s impact across the State.

“Our Government is proactively addressing this issue and is investing significantly in critical climate-independent water resources for the growth of our State,” McGurk said. “We know that sound water planning will play a key role in unlocking the potential of thirteen identified strategic industrial areas, which will ultimately provide development-ready land for investment in downstream processing, including hydrogen and other heavy or strategic industrial activities to generate significant investment, employment and production value for WA.”

McGurk is also focused on strengthening innovation and driving greater efficiencies in using existing water resources. She emphasises the need to support research that enhances the resilience of streets, suburbs, and communities to warmer temperatures and increases the volume of water that is recycled, working alongside industry, scientists, and the community.

“The future presents clear challenges, but there are exciting opportunities ahead. Western Australia will continue to be a leading force in proactive action and innovation as we implement key water management policies and programs to support our State’s future development.”