South Australia is said to be the driest State on the driest continent and most of the rain arrives in one hit during the winter period June-August.

Normal mains water supplies is from the Happy Valley Dam whose catchment is the Adelaide Hill that surround the city also piped overland from the mighty Murray River. However this river which is one of the longest in the world and runs through three States and is heavily used. Consequently,  by the time it reaches the sea at Goolwa, south of Adelaide, the flow is diminished and it is saline or toxic from blue green algae.  There is an ongoing debate as to the alternatives as Adelaide claims to have a shortage of water and the quality can be questionable.

The CSIROs latest solution is to direct stormwater into the aquifer which is close to the surface and reclaim the water later. There are also schemes to pipe water from the Ord and Fitzeroy River in the far NW of the continent, a very long way and. a multi-billion project.

To my mind there is some merit in the CSIRO scheme …   however there can be consequences in depleting the aquifer through pumping. Pumping from remote rivers is absurd, such gross projects and thinking have been proved to be uneconomical, unsustainable and often have dire consequences to the environment and can be prone to sabotage and breakdowns and expensive to run and maintain.

So are there other options ?

Yes there are several ..   When one flys into Adelaide as all big cities it is obvious that there are  enormous areas of roofing that could be incorporated to not only catch and store water but for solar electric and heater panels.

Every building should have rain water tanks installed as standard equipment

It also is apparent the number of swimming pools and areas of private grass. .Is the duplication of swimming pools and private grass really necessary ?

As in most cities the infrastructure is aging and needs constant maintenance and eventually upgrading … that is water pipes are prone to rusting. Perhaps we can bypass central supplies and the dependency on central control.

Most houses in Adelaide use good quality drinking water to shower in and run washing machines and to flush toilets and to water lawns and gardens.. is this really necessary and would recycled (grey) water be adequate ?

Adelaide can have periods of extreme heat in summer and invariably there are power cuts due to thousand of air-conditioners running at the same time.

However air conditioning is not necessary if buildings were sensibly designed with insulation in roof and north facing wall, and through-flow ventilation.  That is low energy efficient building designs. In my home, heating and cooling costs me almost nothing and self-sufficient in water .. my home is supplied by rainwater tanks.

There are many softer path solutions ...  Lets experiment with low-energy  and start sensible and integrated thinking. Lets take responsibility for our actions and stop abusing our environment. Such solutions dont have to be high-tech and cost an arm and a leg.

I am neither Architect or a Builder. I was trained as a mechanical fitter and turner and have an Arts degree. Prior to building my home I studied for an owner builders course at Marlsdon College Adelaide and did an Adobe building workshop with John Archer from Victoria. I also studied many owner builder and low energy design books.  At present I am a business and home builder consultant, freelance writer and web site designer.

I have a coat of many colours and happy to assist and advise wherever I can.

Links ..
 

CSIRO Australia - Scientific and Industrial Research

Water Tanks.com - Septic Tanks, Water Storage Tanks, Pressure Tanks, Pumps

The River Murray

SEE ALSO ....

• Low Energy Home Design by Jai
• Sustainable Communities

Email or phone me ....

fleurcom@bigpond.com .... or  Australia 08 85 363 884