MORE rainwater roof harvesting and more bores are needed to secure future supply needs for the district, according to a Wannon Water blueprint for the next 50 years.
Stormwater runoff collection for irrigating parks, aquifer recharge, more meters on outlets, higher charges for tenants and less wastage are also recommended.
The corporation aims to reduce leakage by the equivalent of 200 Olympic swimming pools annually by 2018.
It is also considering expanding the Otway supply pipeline into more farming areas to cater for dairy expansion.
The extensive draft supply demand strategy is open for public comment until February 20.
“Planning for the future is essential,” Wannon Water managing director Grant Green said.
“Many factors influence demand for water and its availability including population growth, take-up of efficiency measures, temperatures, industrial development and rainfall.”
The strategy says residential water use has fallen during the past five years, but an ageing population and smaller families would lead to more single-person dwellings and lower occupancy levels, triggering a rise in water use per person.
“Growing centres such as Warrnambool will experience an average household water use increase due to demographic shift as well as absolute water use due to growth,” it says.
“Once pricing is linked with water use, customers make better decisions about water use and efficiency investments.”
It recommends increasing the volumetric pricing for tenants of rental properties and all fire service connections will soon metered in Warrnambool to prevent anauthorised extractions.
An additional groundwater bore will be constructed at Albert Park by 2020 at an estimated cost of $300,000 while more bores and piping are suggested at Curdievale for about $3.5 million from 2029.
Although roofwater harvesting is a higher cost option than the Curdievale bores it is recommended because it would not generate greenhouse gases.
A demonstration project is already in use in north Warrnambool and will be expanded to make new housing subdivisions produce as much water as they consume. It has also been suggested for the new eastern industrial park and the AquaZone aquatic centre.
Another less attractive option is to construct three deep bores around Warrnambool to mix with Otways surface water and eventually have a desalination plant to remove brine.
Investigations are also underway into the possibility of separating salty flows at the Warrnambool reclamation plant to produce better reycled water.
The strategy suggests potential for stormwater storage and aquifer recharge at Warrnambool racecourse, stormwater storage at Flagstaff Hill, potential to treat lake water for irrigation of Lake Pertobe playground and Harris Street reserve and potential for using recycled water at the golf club.
The draft strategy can be viewed on the Wannon Water website.
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