Victorian Minister for Water, Gayle Tierney, has today released the Water Security Plan which investigates how to maintain the state’s water supply as its population grows.
The Minister said Melbourne and Geelong’s water supplies are currently secure with desalinated water helping to deliver reliable supplies to more than six million people.
However, modelling estimates that over the next decade, Victoria will need an extra 95 billion litres of water per year on top of the Victorian Desalination Plant running at full capacity.
“We’re making sure Victoria continues to have a secure and affordable water supply as our state grows and climate gets drier,” said Minister Tierney.
“We know large-scale projects can take a decade to plan and deliver. That’s why we’re doing the work now to secure affordable and high quality water for generations to come.”
The Water Security Plan investigates ways to meet future water demand across Greater Melbourne, Geelong and parts of Gippsland.
The potential solutions being investigated include increasing water efficiency, using more storm and recycled water for non-drinking water, supplementing water storages with purified recycled water, and expansion of desalination capacity.
The investigations into water security will be informed by an expert Water Security Taskforce. The bipartisan Taskforce will bring together water industry expert Dr Jane Doolan, former Ministers for Water Lisa Neville and Peter Walsh, Melbourne Water Managing Director, Dr Nerina Di Lorenzo and DEECA Executive Director for Water Security and Resilience, Andrew Fennessy.
The Taskforce will review the potential future water supply options and consult with the community before reporting back to government in 2027.
The Water Security Plan is available at Water.vic.gov.au.
