The Miali Brumby community has reduced its water use by one quarter the past year as a result of investment into the water infrastructure and a positive shift in water use behaviour among residents.
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The water savings are the result of a partnership between the Kalano Community Association, Power and Water's Living Water Smart program and the Department of Local Government, Housing and Community Services' Town Camp Futures program.
The community is now saving around 140,000 litres of water per day, which is an estimated saving of about $280 each day.
More than $500,000 was invested by the Town Camps Future Unit into the infrastructure of the community to improve water infrastructure including upgrading community plumbing, installation of water meters, better home hardware and household solars.
"There were ongoing legacy issues with aging infrastructure resulting in leaks, which were wasting significant volumes of water," Living Water Smart's program manager Jethro Laidlaw said.
After being approached by the Living Water Smart team, the community sprang into action.
"Residents prioritised fixing up their houses. A lot of water was being wasted and water is a resource we don't have the luxury of wasting," Bill Headley, CEO of Kalano Community Association said.
Prior to recent works, Miali Brumby only had one water meter at the entrance of the community. The meter indicated significant leaks but it was near impossible to detect where the leaks were located, with many leaks hidden underground or beneath infrastructure.
To help narrow down the leak locations, sub-meters were installed at each property. Living Water Smart also installed isolation valves to assist in leak detection.
"This allowed for sections of the water mains to effectively be shut off, assisting in tracking down leaks and aiding future maintenance," Mr Laidlaw said.
New water efficient fixtures, such as shower heads, taps and toilets were also installed to help reduce water use as part of the housing and infrastructure upgrades.
"We have been able to educate and work with residents to save water. Residents are reducing water use in the garden, turning off taps after kids' water play and reporting leaks as soon as they're suspected," Mr Headley said.
"We're really proud of the progress we have made in a short time period, and will continue to work with the team at Living Water Smart to further reduce water use."
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