Water use on road works is a community issue

A sector wide forum at the end of March, on the critical issue of water use on road works, agreed that a centralised management plan from the Victorian Government, is the key to managing this important community issue.

The use of potable water for road works summit, hosted by the Civil Contractors Federation of Victoria, the Municipal Association of Victoria and the Institute of Public Works Engineering of Australia, was called to address the ongoing issue of potable (or drinking quality) water use on road construction and maintenance projects.

Convened in response to a number of water use challenges faced by government and the industry, including difficulties in identifying non-potable water sources and negative community perceptions of water use on road works during times of tight water restrictions, it was attended by almost 100 representatives of local and state government, water companies, civil contracting firms and other construction companies.

It discussed what was known about current water use issues and the great challenges ahead for this important contributor to infrastructure development and the economy.

Presentations from VicRoads and the EPA were well received, as were case examples of current practice and challenges from Mornington Peninsula Shire and Central Highlands Water.

The afternoon workshop explored the current situation from both an industry and regulator perspective and a number of learnings and innovations were discussed and there was also broad agreement on the direction needed, with items for action including but not limited to:

• Understanding exactly how much water is used on road works across Victoria;

• Development of a centralised water atlas of all alternative water sources, including quality and quantity information; and

• Development of an industrial waste water exchange, to match producers of suitable industrial waste water with users of water for construction purposes, allowing industrial users to have their waste water disposed of and reused, resulting in potentially lower costs for both parties and less overall potable water use.

The summit recognised that water use affects all members of the community in some form, either through finite water supplies limiting alternative uses, or the potential limitation of infrastructure development and maintenance.

With the issue crossing multiple levels of government, the summit indicated the only way forward is for strong, central leadership from the Victorian Government and the development of a comprehensive road works water use strategy.

Industry representatives indicated their commitment to providing the Victorian Government, local government and the water companies full and complete assistance in their task of reducing demand on potable water supplies. But until credible alternatives are developed, and within the context of a comprehensive statewide plan, it is simply not an option that access to potable water be denied for construction and maintenance projects.