Delving into think tanks

IN THE world of water think tanks there are plenty of associations, research projects, journal publications, government authorities and experts.

In this article, we look at two key players. First, the peak national body, the Australian Water Association ( AWA) offers conferences, events, publications and networks to facilitate sustainable water management.

Corporate, government and individual members can connect with each other and international expertise in the goal of best practice in managing the world’s most precious resource.

The second notable player is Monash University and its Cooperative Research Centre for Water Sensitive Cities ( CRCWSC). At a time when our future water security is at a critical point, the two bodies coincide as Townsville is one of five cities in the CRCWSC’s current study along with Perth, Adelaide, Bendigo and Sydney.

The AWA will run its 2018 Queensland Regional Conference in Cairns on July 26 and 27.

Local councils and water providers will be the main participants. This year’s theme: “A Region of Extremes – Resilience and Innovation in the Face of Change.”

This is very relevant to WFTAG’s role of scrutinising politically invested infrastructure deliberations. Despite WFTAG not being an incorporated body, a state or council authority or formal research body, we submitted an abstract in our role as the Community Partner for the Townsville City Deal. We were not successful. Turning to the CRCWSC, researchers had three workshops in Townsville last November. It saw benchmarking of the city’s current water sensitive performance using CRCWSC’s web- based assessment Index Tool.

In December there was refinement of the “shared vision” and developing strategies for Townsville to transition as a water sensitive city.

Stakeholders from across Townsville’s water, planning and development sectors attended but the general community was not involved.

The third and final one- day workshop in 2018 will allow time “to bring the community along on the water sensitive transition journey.”

Before then it would be reasonable to expect details to be made public about Townsville’s benchmark, according to the CRCWSC.

What is this “shared future vision” for becoming a water sensitive city? What is the transition plan? Are council’s WTP workshops led by Jamie Durie part of the research?

Is TCC’s state- funded marketing campaign to change perceptions of Brownsville, also part of the Monash project? What will be the take home message about Townsville’s “resilience and innovation in the face of change”?

How might WFTAG’s raw community perspective have told a different story?

Excerpts from the two extracts, flagged as either TCC- WSC’s or WFTAG’s, provide a few insights.

The two abstracts are the result of looking at Townsville’s water sensitivities through very different lenses.

The CRCWSC- TCC presentation is entitled “Creating Water Sensitive Regional Cities”. It will focus on the research framework and Index Tool which “have helped characterise what a truly water sensitive city could entail by articulating a shared set of goals and indicators that can be used to establish a benchmark of current water sensitive performance.”

The speakers will suggest the project’s strategies “can assist a wide range of government and municipality stakeholders to ensure their water resources and waterways, in all their glorious forms, are central to the design of more water sensitive cities.

The abstract concludes: “Townsville City Council is helping to lead the way for regional towns and cities to become more water sensitive while ensuring other regional priorities such as economic growth and a highly variable climate.”

The written version is likely to be included in the AWA’s national online conference proceedings.

WFTAG’s unsuccessful abstract title was: “Townsville Imagines Water Security: The City Deal Mirage.”

Some key stats would have been provided about the Burdekin supply in proximity to our long suffering, water insecure, dry tropics city.

Imagine … an already- dammed water catchment two- thirds the area of Victoria, storing up to five times the volume of Sydney Harbour.

This is no mirage. The Burdekin Falls Dam, built in 1987, through intergovernmental collaboration, was always intended for Lower Burdekin irrigation and Townsville’s future urban supply. It took just three years to construct from sod turn to opening and filled the following year.

The daily volume overflowing the huge spillway most years would fill Townsville’s shallow Ross Dam in a few days. The original narrow pipeline from the Burdekin region now costs $ 34,000 a day to pump an emergency supply.

Now 30 years later, with Townsville’s population nearing 200,000, the colloquial tag of “Brownsville” reflects the continuing impact of regular severe water restrictions.

In December 2016, Townsville’s Mayor announced: “Townsville does not have a water problem” as the city struggled to keep to the restricted supply during its third successive failed wet season. The comment triggered formation of WFTAG – the Water for Townsville Action Group.

The volunteer, activist, nonpartisan community group began lobbying for new infrastructure to be based on science and education, not partisan politics and electoral cycles.

At the same time the Federal Government awarded Townsville the first ever 15- year City Deal.

All three tiers of government pledged to improve on previous arrangements for provision of critical infrastructure.

Being water sensitive is important but conservation alone won’t achieve water security without the best infrastructure solution to be installed now and to last 70+ years.