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Water Transformed: Sustainable Water Solutions for
Climate Change Adaptation
Built
Environment, Industry Professionals and Planners
have a critical role to play in developing planned
adaptive responses to Climate Change. This project
seeks to create a suite of freely available online
training resources to support and assist education
and training of students and professionals. This
project will bring together leading research and
practice in urban and industrial water resource
management and supply to address key knowledge
and professional skills training gaps. It will
also bring together an up-to-date resource to
provide professionals in the field with easy access
to latest innovations and proven technologies
in these areas.
Water management decisions made over
the next decade will have significant impacts
on Australia’s economic, environmental and
social well-being in light of reduced availability
and unreliable supply of water due to Climate
Change.
There is a need to
focus on industrial and urban water usage and
the rapid urban development occurring along coastal
zones around Australia that are raising many complex
water, natural resource management, engineering
and planning challenges. Adapting to climate change
will require significant professional skills development
in urban, coastal and industrial water resource
management and supply to address changes to water
availability and rising sea levels, and this is
the primary focus of this proposal. Skills will
also be required to adapt infrastructure and buildings
to the risks of bushfires, cyclones and hailstorms.
This is also addressed in this proposal. This
project has been developed in consultation with
a number of collaborating partners, many representing
important end users of the training material.
The material will undergo a rigorous review by
Engineers, Architects, Water Professionals and
Academics across the collaborating Professional
Institutions, Universities, Government Agencies,
Industry and NGO collaborators.
Recently attitudes
to climate change issues have changed significantly
in Australia. Professionals across industry, universities,
government and the community all want to play
their part.
They are looking for
a range of authoritative training and capacity
building materials, based on rigorous research,
that are extensively peer reviewed, and available
online, to learn how to ensure that they act wisely
to respond to climate change. This project seeks
to create a significant peer reviewed and authoritative
online training resource for industry and business,
universities, local governments, and community
organisations focused on ‘Education
for Climate Change Adaptation in Water Resource
Management and Supply’.
Currently the information available on the web
for adaptation to climate change in the urban
and industrial settings in this area is limited,
scattered and rarely thoroughly peer reviewed
or accredited for professional bodies or the education
sector. The project will seek to address this
in part, specifically focusing on adaptation to
Climate Change implications with water management
and supply and seeks to; Provide a strong foundation
for a cost effective strategy to educate/train
large numbers of Australians over the next decade
in climate change adaptation knowledge and skills
related to water management and supply; Empower
Australian industry, governments and communities
to adapt to climate change and in so doing achieve
economic and environmental benefits; and help
to reduce regulatory and compliance costs for
industry and business in meeting local and international
demand for goods and services that address the
implications and impacts of climate change.
The following questions will be addressed in the
training program in consultation with the project’s
partnering organisations:
1. What changes are needed to the built environment
and infrastructure to reduce the risks of cyclones,
hailstorms, and bushfires.
2. What is the latest in best practice in water
demand management - the role of water efficiency,
recycling, integrated water management approaches
to respond to water scarcity and unreliable supply
from climate change?
3. What is best practice for water supply side
options for Australian cities and industry to
secure supply with climate change?
4. What are the most effective ways to deliver
best practice information to ensure it is effective
and useful for all water professionals, planners,
decision makers as well as educational & professional
institutions?
The project supports the ARIES recommendation
that education about and for climate change adaptation
should be in an integrated way with education
about and for climate change mitigation. TNEP
would like to thank its in-kind administrative
hosts Griffith University and the ANU. TNEP would
also like to especially thank Philip Toyne, Stephen
Dovers, Martin Dwyer, David Hood, Gary Codner,
John Wiliams and Molly Olsen for acting as referees
to the application.
Education
Program Summary
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For
each lecture, includes a 2-4pp summary
of key points and lists of:
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Key references
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Best practice case studies
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Useful links
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Expert reviewers and mentors |
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Download
Program Summary (PDF) |
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Program Citation: Smith,
M., Hargroves, K., Desha, C., and Stasinopoulos,
P. (2009) Water Transformed: Sustainable
Water Solutions for Climate Change Adaptation,
The Natural Edge Project (TNEP), Griffith
University, and Australian National University,
Australia.
Module
A: Adapting to Climate Change
Module
Citation: Smith, M., Hargroves, K., Desha,
C., and Stasinopoulos, P. (2009) Water Transformed:
Sustainable Water Solutions for Climate Change Adaptation
- Module A, The Natural Edge Project (TNEP),
Griffith University, and Australian National University,
Australia.
Chapter
1: Understanding the Risks and Adapting to Climate
Change
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This lecture will outline the main risks and
vulnerabilities from climate change to explain
the importance of climate change adaptation
and mitigation. This lecture will also outline
why climate change, if not mitigated globally,
is likely to result in more intense hailstorms
and cyclones, more frequent heat waves and higher
risks of bushfires, rising sea levels, and reduced
water availability in Southern and Eastern Australia
and South West Australia. |
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This lecture will discuss how climate change
is likely to lead to cyclones of higher intensity
and destructive power this century, as well
as what measures can be taken to reduce the
risks of damage for residential, commercial
and industrial buildings from cyclones. As climate
change is also forecast to lead to more extreme
weather events, such as hailstorms, this lecture
will discuss what design changes can be made
to buildings to reduce the risks of damage from
hailstorms. |
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This
lecture points out the fact that there has already
been an increase in the frequency and intensity
of bushfires due to climate change in many parts
of the world, and overviews the climate change
science literature which suggests that there
will be increasing risks from bushfires due
to their greater intensity and frequency in
the future. This lecture discusses the lessons
from this research based on peer reviewed research
published before the February 2009 Victoria
bushfires. |
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This
lecture will explain how climate change is causing
sea-level rises, and discuss the associated
risks (including amplification of storm surges)
as well as providing an overview of the adaptation
options. This lecture summarises some of the
most important recent developments that will
affect the likely scale and rate of sea-level
rises, so as to help better inform planning
decision making processes. |
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Module
B: Adapting to Changes in Water Availability - Industry
& Commercial
Module
Citation: Smith, M., Hargroves, K., Desha,
C., and Stasinopoulos, P. (2009) Water Transformed:
Sustainable Water Solutions for Climate Change Adaptation
- Module B, The Natural Edge Project (TNEP),
Griffith University, and Australian National University,
Australia.
Chapter
2: Getting Started: The Fundamentals of Monitoring/Measuring
Water Usage & Identifying Water Efficiency, Recycling
& Water Collection/Storage Opportunities
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The
aim of this lecture is to explain the economic
case for sustainable water solutions and to
provide an overview of the understandings, facts
and figures needed to properly comprehend the
opportunity presented by such initiatives. |
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The
aim of this lecture is to outline the key components
of a comprehensive water management plan, refereeing
to key supporting resources and references.
In order to identify water saving opportunities
it is essential to understand how and where
water is used within a facility or building.
Thus undertaking water audits, complimented
with effective metering and monitoring, is a
key part of developing a water management plan.
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This
lecture briefly discusses the vulnerability
of the agricultural sector to water related
impacts from climate change, in particular with
regard to large land-using activities such as
grazing and cropping. The lecture then discusses
a number of emerging methods available to farmers,
to achieve dramatic improvements in water productivity
in these two areas. |
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This
lecture provides an overview of the major areas
of water usage and potential for water savings
in retail, commercial and office buildings,
highlighting supporting key resources. While
there are many resources explaining how to achieve
water savings in the home comparatively little
assistance has been provided to other building
types such as retail, office and commercial
spaces, and this lecture focuses here. |
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Chapter
3: Identifying & Implementing Water Efficiency
& Recycling Opportunities by Industry Sector
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This lecture provides
an overview of water saving opportunities available
in the manufacturing sector, focusing on possibilities
for factory operations. The lecture also includes
examples of water saving achievements in paper,
chemicals and plastics, automotive, carpet, glass,
pharmaceuticals, aluminium, steel and cement manufacturing
industries. |
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This lecture overviews ways in which
food processors can reduce the amount of water
consumed in plant processing and cleaning, as
well as in auxiliary amenities such as washrooms,
cafeterias and gardens. It discusses future trends
and possible opportunities in water reuse and
recycling for significant water consuming food
processors in Australia including the meat industry,
chicken and poultry, dairy, and fruit and vegetables
industries, featuring examples of significant
water saving achievements. |
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The aim of this lecture is to provide
an overview of the opportunities to save water
in mining operations. 1. Water is essential for
a mining operation, and as it is involved in all
stages of the process there are a range of opportunities
to reduce its consumption, while protecting the
supply and receiving natural systems. |
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Chapter
4: Identifying and Implementing Water Efficiency &
Recycling Opportunities by Service Sector
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This lecture aims to
overview key areas of water usage in the tourism
industry, focusing on hotels and hospitality (including
restaurants). The lecture highlights opportunities
to cost effectively reduce water consumption without
compromising the quality of service to customers,
including a number of case studies and links to
best practice examples. |
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This lecture highlights experiences
of water efficiency leaders in the hospital sector,
to demonstrate the wide variety of ways that hospitals
can achieve substantial water savings. The lecture
highlights best practice case studies, and includes
a list of government funding grant/loan programs
in Australia which hospitals can access to help
fund water saving investments. |
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This lecture provides an overview
of a variety of ways that schools and higher education
institutions (HEIs) including universities and
vocational education centres, can cost effectively
achieve water savings. The lecture aims to highlight
some of the key mechanisms being used in the school
and HEI sectors, including web links to online
resources. |
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Module
C: Best Practice Integrated Urban and Coastal Water
Resource Management
The
following Modulehas been developed by Dr Michael Smith,
Research Fellow, Australian National University, under
funding from TNEP and with the supervision of Professor
Stephen Dovers.
Module Citation:
Smith, M. (2010) Water Transformed: Sustainable
Water Solutions for Climate Change Adaptation
- Module C, The Natural Edge Project (TNEP),
Griffith University, and Australian National University,
Australia.
Chapter
5: Integrated Water Resource Planning in a Changing
Climate – Water Supply and Demand Management
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Lecture 5.1 reviews the climate
change science to see how it is going to affect
water supply and demand. Lecture 5.1 shows that
changes in water availability and demand for water
from climate change will have a significant effect
on the scale and timing of supply-demand gaps
for water authorities. The global water industry
has great expertise in increasing supply options
to manage this supply/demand gap. But the global
water industry is now experiencing a growing need
to better understand and manage the demand for
water as part of an integrated resource planning
framework. Specifically, practitioners need new
skills in understanding how to develop, implement
and evaluate demand management programs. This
lecture addresses this need. |
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Integrated water resource planning,
in which a full range of both supply-side and
demand-side options are assessed, has emerged
as the most robust and comprehensive framework
for decision making to help water utilities plan
for a changing climate. The aim of this lecture
is to provide an overview of this methodology
and show how it can assist the water sector adapt
to climate change. The lecture provides significant
further detailed online resources to assist water
utilities and water planners develop and implement
specific aspects of an integrated water resource
planning approach. |
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The aim of this lecture
is to show how to manage the risks from climate
change to water quality. Water quality is a major
issue affecting the health of populations, the
health of the environment and the livelihoods
of other water users such as farmers and industry.
This lecture will look at the major risks to water
quality from climate change and overviews strategies
to prevent water pollution and contamination.
This lecture provides an overview of the tools
available and is supported by extensive detailed
further reading resources. |
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Sea-level rise also will negatively
affect coastal urban potable freshwater quality
by enabling movement of seawater into potable
fresh groundwater resources in coastal regions.
Incursion of saline water into fresh-groundwater
aquifers potentially can result in a significant
loss of water supply. A large portion of humanity
now lives in cities and towns near or on the coast.
Protecting the potable fresh water supplies for
many coastal cities and coastal regions from saltwater
intrusion from rising sea levels is a significant
challenge. The aim of this lecture is the clearly
outline a range of options of how to do this. |
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Chapter
6: Urban and Industrial Water Treatment,
Reuse And Recycling – Part A
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The aim of this lecture,
and the lectures which follow, is
to teach how to identify and implement
water recycling opportunities within
a rigorous risk assessment and community
consultation framework to ensure
that water recycling projects address
all relevant health, environmental
and community concerns. This lecture
and the following lectures are deliberately
aligned to introduce and overview
knowledge relevant for the new Australian
National Water Quality Guidelines
for Water Recycling. The aim of
this lecture is thus to help improve
skills in this area to ensure that
all future reuse and recycling projects
effectively address health concerns
and are carried out with meaningful
community consultation. |
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This lecture
firstly overviews a number of companies
that have achieved at least 50 per
cent potable water savings through
an integrated approach to water
efficiency, water treatment and
reuse. In Module B we showed that
there was a strong business case
for using water more efficiently.
Here we provide examples which show
that there is also a business case
for treating and reusing water onsite
to further reduce freshwater and
trade waste costs. To help business’s
identify opportunities in this area,
the main purpose of this lecture
is to provide an overview of the
different water treatment technologies.
As earlier lectures have shown,
there is significant potential to
increase the level of water reuse
and recycling in Australia. But
to achieve this, greater understanding
and awareness is needed across business
and industry. This lecture, and
its further reading resources, seek
to provide such a guide. |
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Currently, in most
coastal cities, significant amounts
of water fall onto roads, roofs
and simply flow out to sea through
stormwater drains. In addition,
significant quantities of water
are only used once and also then
are piped out to sea. This lecture
will present the case to turn the
problem of stormwater management
into a valuable resource. This is
important because, with climate
change, there is likely to be both
more intense storms leading to higher
risks of urban flooding events combined
with risks of declining rainfall
affecting the security of urban
water supplies. Urban stormwater
thus presents itself as both a potential
hazard, and a potential valuable
resource of water to help cities
adapt to climate change. This lecture
seeks to show how capturing, harvesting,
treating, storing, reusing and recycling
stormwater can both reduce risks
of flooding during extreme rain
fall events and provide alternative
water supply options. |
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Chapter
7: Urban and Industrial Water Treatment,
Reuse And Recycling – Part B
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The aim of this lecture
is to overview two important strategies
to help adapt to climate change
– namely constructed wetlands
and managed aquifer storage and
recovery. As Lecture 6.1 showed,
a major issue with reusing water
without treatment is the significant
risk of health problems due to the
likely presence of at least one
of pathogens, chemicals, fine particle
sediments or other pollutants. Options
are needed, designed to reclaim
nutrients and water from wastewater
for reuse, while also removing pathogens,
chemicals and other fine particles.
Constructed wetlands are one such
system. Increasingly constructed
wetlands are being used to provide
initial water treatment for managed
aquifer recharge and recovery schemes.
Storage of water is becoming increasingly
important as climate variability
impacts on balancing demand with
supply. Recent research by CSIRO
shows that there is significant
potential in Adelaide, Perth and
Melbourne to harvest urban stormwater
and store it cost effectively in
aquifers for later reuse. This lecture
provides an overview of the different
ways managed aquifer storage and
recovery can be used to help adapt
to climate change. |
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The aim
of this lecture is to highlight
the potential for water reuse and
recycling in the building sector
of cities. The lecture seeks to
overview the main ways water can
be reused in this sector and seeks
to provide an overview of the steps
needed to ensure that water is used
in ways that ensure human health. |
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This lecture provides
an introduction and overview of
the main concepts and ways to implement
Water Sensitive Urban Design (WSUD),
also known internationally as Integrated
Water Management (IWM). In its broadest
context, WSUD is the integrated
design approach that seeks to address
society’s water needs whilst
respecting and seeking to work with,
not against the natural water cycle.
To achieve this goal, WSUD incorporates
and integrates the following; reducing
potable water demand through water
efficient appliances and technologies
(Module B, Lectures 2.1-4.3), demand
management (Module C, Lecture 5.1-5.2),
water source protection (Lecture
5.3), improving water security and
self-sufficiency of water supply
from treated wastewater and stormwater
(Lectures 6.1-6.3 and 7.1), improving
urban amenity through utilising
natural water features such as constructed
wetlands (Lecture 7.1), and greater
use of rainwater tanks (Lecture
7.2). Hence this “Water Transformed”
online textbook is also designed
to be a “how to” manual
for Water Sensitive Urban Design.
Taken as a whole, WSUD represents
a fundamental shift in the way water
and water infrastructure are considered
in the planning process for cities
and towns. |
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Expert/Academic
Advisory Panel (In-Kind):
Collaboration with fellow academics, industry
and government colleagues in this project are
critical to its success. The following national
and international leaders in sustainability have
committed to act in an advisory panel, contributing
in-kind support through advice, mentoring and
peer review:
International
Panel Members:
- Dr Peter Gleick: Co-founder and President of
the Pacific Institute for Studies in Development,
Environment, and Security in Oakland, California.
- Dr Heather Cooley: Senior Research Associate.
The Pacific Institute for Studies in Development,
Environment, and Security in Oakland, California.
- Cheryl
Davis: International Water Association and San
Francisco (Water) Utilities Commission.
Academic
Panel Members:
- Emeritus Professor Pat Troy: Visiting Fellow,
Fenner School of Environment and Society (formally
Centre for Resource and Environmental Studies)
(ANU); Adjunct Professor (Griffith University).
- Professor Peter Newman: Director, Institute
for Sustainable Technology and Policy (Murdoch
University).
- Professor
Stephen Dovers: Academic Staff Member, Fenner
School of Environment and Society, (formerly Centre
for Resource and Environmental Studies), ANU;
Collaboration Supervisor (ANU-TNEP) & Network
Mentor, TNEP.
- Professor Stuart Bunn: Director, Australian
Rivers Institute (Griffith University).
- Professor
Rodger Tomlinson: Director, Griffith Centre for
Coastal Management; Member – Steering Committee,
Smart Water; Program Leader, Griffith Climate
Change Response Program.
- Professor Joe Lee: Deputy Director, Australian
Rivers Institute (Griffith University), Director,
Queensland Smart Water Research Facility.
- Professor Ralph Buckley: Chair, Griffith Climate
Change Response Group; Member, International Centre
for Ecotourism Research (Griffith University).
- Assoc Prof Poh-Ling Tan: Director, Internationalisation,
Griffith Law School, (Griffith University).
- Dr Margaret Greenway: Academic Staff Member,
Centre for Environmental Systems Research, Griffith
University; Environmental Engineering College
Board Member, Institution of Engineers Australia;
Qld President, Stormwater Industry Association;
Network Mentor and Contributor, TNEP.
- Dr Barry Newell: ANU Fenner School of Environment
and Society and Facilitator of ANU National Institute
for Environment's Climate and Water Integration
Group.
- Associate Professor Rodger Hadgraft: President
of the Australasian Association of Engineering
Educators. Director Engineering Education Unit,
(Melbourne University).
- Dr Philip Williams: Ass. Member, Centre for
Environmental Systems Research; Brisbane City
Council Sustainability Taskforce.
- Associate Professor Gary Codner: Associate Dean,
Teaching Faculty of Engineering, Monash University.
- Dr Fran Sheldon: Core Group, Australian Rivers
Institute, Griffith University; International
Water Centre - Masters Water Program Coordinator
(Griffith University).
- Dr Rodney Stewart: Member, Centre for Infrastructure,
Engineering and Management (Griffith University).
- Mr
Justin Leonard - Director CSIRO Sustainable Ecosystems’
Bushfire Urban Design Project.
- Dr
Graeme Pearman: Honorary Senior Research Fellow,
Monash University Arts, Geography and Environmental
Science, (Director GP Consulting) Formerly Chief
of the CSIRO Division of Atmospheric Research.
- Associate Professor Gary Codner:
Associate Dean, Teaching Faculty of Engineering,
Monash University.
- Professor Bofu Yu: Griffith School
of Engineering, Deputy Head of School, Nathan
Campus.
- David
Dumaresq: ANU Fenner School for Environment and
Society, Senior Lecturer Human Ecology, Agro-ecology,
and Sustainable Systems.
- Marguerite Renouf: Director, UNEP
Cleaner Production Working Group in the Food Industry,
University of Queensland.
- Adj.
Prof Paul Perkins: Australian National University,
Chair, Australian Science Festival Ltd, Chair,
Environment Industry Action Agenda and Barton
Group, and Director and Immediate Past Chairman
Environment Management Industry Association of
Australia Ltd (EMIAA), now Environment Business
Australia, and Chair of The National Environmental
Education Council. Mr Perkins is also a Companion
of the Australian Institution of Engineers and
an Honorary Ambassador for Canberra.
Industry
Panel Members:
- Vivian Filling: National Manager, Environment
Policy & Membership Services, Australia Industry
Group.
- Sally Armstrong: Manager, Business Customer
Strategy at Sydney Water Corporation.
- Alison
Scotland: ILEP Project Officer, Every Drop Counts
Business Program, Sydney WaterCorporation.
- Caleb Furner: Water Efficiency Specialist, Every
Drop Counts Business Program, Sydney Water Corporation.
- Carl Binns: Water Efficiency Specialist, Customer
Sustainability, Sydney Water Corporation.
- Claire Hammond: Water Efficiency Specialist,
Every Drop Counts Business Program, Sydney Water
Corporation.
- Dennis Lee: Customer Sustainability, Water Efficiency
Specialist - EDC Business. Sydney Water Corporation.
- Para K Parameshwaran: Project Officer Every
Drop Counts Business Program, Sydney Water Corporation.
- Barry Coker and Jeffrey Briggs: St Andrews Hospital,
Brisbane.
- Nick
Edgerton: AMP Capital Sustainable Share Fund (formerly
the Institute for Sustainable Futures, University
of Technology Sydney, Australia).
- Dr
Helen Stratton: Academic Staff Member, Centre
for Coastal Management, Griffith; Environmental
Engineering College Board Member, Institution
of Engineers Australia; Qld President, Australian
Water Association.
Government Panel Members:
- Anntonette Joseph: Director, Urban Water Efficiency
Initiatives, Commonwealth Department of Environment,
Water, Heritage and the Arts.
- Harriet Adams: Urban Water Efficiency
Initiatives, Commonwealth Department of Environment,
Water, Heritage and the Arts.
- Jill Grant: Commonwealth Department
of Industry, Tourism and Resources – Director,
Sustainable Development Section.
- Karen Jacobson: Commonwealth Department of Resources,
Energy and Tourism.
- Rob McKenna: Energy Saving Specialist, Water
& Energy Programs, NSW Department of Environment
and Climate Change.
- Victoria Hart: Facilitator and Program Director,
Sustainability Victoria.
- Alex Fearnside: Leader of the Sustainability
Team, Melbourne City Council.
- Mr
Greg Bruce: Townsville City Council – Environmental
Management Services.
- Mr Chris Williams: Civil Projects Officer -
City of Playford.
NGO
Panel Members:
- Averil Bones: Freshwater Campaigner, World Wildlife
Fund, Australia.
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