As the weather heats up and with our summer holidays around the corner – people from across the state and the country take the opportunity to visit regional areas, like the East Coast and major population centres like our capital city.
Water conservation may not be at the forefront of people’s minds while they pack a suitcase, but TasWater would like to remind Tasmanians and its visitors that it’s up to all of us to use water wisely.
TasWater Climate Change Strategy Lead Luc Richard said visitor numbers cause temporary population booms in several towns in the South, East and North-East each summer.
“The extra people in these areas means an increased demand for water, and spikes in demand can put significant pressure on their water systems and supplies,” Mr Richard said.
“People think Tasmania has a lot of water but that’s not the case everywhere. The Midlands and the East Coast are relatively dry, and Hobart ranks as the second-driest capital in Australia after Adelaide,” Mr Richard said.
“If we get into the habit of being more mindful of our water use throughout the year, it can help ensure sufficient supplies for everyone, particularly in the warmer months.”
“Being wiser with water can be simple, through small changes like not taking too long in the shower or washing vehicles on the grass using a bucket and a hand-held hose fitted with a trigger nozzle.”
TasWater is also playing its part to improve water surety, to ensure we are maximising our resources to help ensure water is available for Tasmanians in the future.
“We have a range of programs underway to mitigate any leaks we have within our networks,” Mr Richard said.
This is through our use of leak detection technology, so we can identify and pinpoint leaks that are not visible, and our water main renewal program, which aims to ensure reliable delivery of drinking water by replacing aging pipes.
These works span across Tasmania and will reduce unplanned outages, providing greater water reliability to the region for years to come.
Over the last year we have also upgraded the Upper Reservoir Dam in Hobart, water mains at Scottsdale and Port Sorell as well as replaced a section of the Lake Fenton Pipeline that feeds water from the Mt Field National Park to customers in the greater Hobart area.
More significantly, our Bryn Estyn Water Treatment Plant upgrade is well underway which will increase the drinking water production capacity to a growing Hobart population.
“These are just some of the examples of works we have done and will continue to do to help ensure water security – but we need your help too,” Mr Richard said.
For more water conservation tips at home and away, visit taswater.com.au and select
“Water Wise” from the Community tab.