Water Supply and Governance Options for Outback Towns in South Australia
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Water Supply and Governance Options for Outback Towns in South Australia Eileen Willis, Meryl Pearce, Bradley Jorgensen and John Martin Goyder Institute for Water Research Technical Report Series No. 15/7 www.goyderinstitute.org Goyder Institute for Water Research Technical Report Series ISSN: 1839-2725 The Goyder Institute for Water Research is a partnership between the South Australian Government through the Department of Environment, Water and Natural Resources, CSIRO, Flinders University, the University of Adelaide and the University of South Australia. The Institute will enhance the South Australian Government’s capacity to develop and deliver science-based policy solutions in water management. It brings together the best scientists and researchers across Australia to provide expert and independent scientific advice to inform good government water policy and identify future threats and opportunities to water security. Enquires should be addressed to: Goyder Institute for Water Research Level 1, Torrens Building 220 Victoria Square, Adelaide, SA, 5000 tel: 08-8303 8952 e-mail: [email protected] Citation Willis E. M., Pearce M. W., Jorgensen B. S., and Martin J. F., 2015, Water supply and governance options for outback towns in remote South Australia, Goyder Institute for Water Research Technical Report Series No. 15/7, Adelaide, South Australia Copyright © 2015 Flinders University To the extent permitted by law, all rights are reserved and no part of this publication covered by copyright may be reproduced or copied in any form or by any means except with the written permission of Flinders University. Disclaimer The participants advise that the information contained in this publication comprises general statements based on scientific research and does not warrant or represent the completeness of any information or material in this publication. 2 Acknowledgements Our thanks are extended to the members of the Steering Committee, particularly Neil Power, Mark Sutton and David Leek, for the additional help they provided over the six months we conducted the review. Special thanks to Paul Atherton from GWMWater and Dr Kirstin Ross, School of the Environment, Flinders University who reviewed the report. Several individuals provided advice beyond what was required as part of their administrative role. Our thanks to Adam Stanford from Tourism SA, Lee Morgan from DEWNR, Stuart Peevor from ESCOSA, and Glyn Ashman and Richard Cawley from SA Water. Where there are errors, this is our responsibility, and where we have shown considerable insight into the industry, much is the result of their clear direction. The quality of the final product owes much to the editorial skills of Ms Danni Oliver from the Goyder Institute. 3 Table of Contents Abbreviations ................................................................................................................... 8 Executive Summary ........................................................................................................ 10 1 Introduction ........................................................................................................................... 10 2 Methodology ......................................................................................................................... 10 3 The five townships ................................................................................................................. 10 4 Key findings from the literature review ................................................................................ 10 5 What is a sustainable service in rural and remote contexts?................................................ 12 6 An approach to community consultation across the outback .............................................. 12 7 Water supply governance options ........................................................................................ 14 Chapter 1: Introduction to the Study ............................................................................. 17 1.1 Rationale for the study .......................................................................................................... 17 1.2 Why a study on water supply and governance in remote South Australia now? ................. 18 1.3 A theoretical context to the study......................................................................................... 20 Chapter 2: Methodology for the Study....................................................................... 22 2.1 Components of the methodology ......................................................................................... 22 2.2 Selection of the five outback townships .............................................................................. 23 2.3 Literature search strategy ..................................................................................................... 25 2.4 What the study does not include .......................................................................................... 26 Chapter 3: Literature Review of Existing Water Sources in Five Outback Towns ............... 28 3.1 Introduction ........................................................................................................................... 28 3.2 Glendambo ............................................................................................................................ 29 3.3 Innamincka ............................................................................................................................ 31 3.4 Marree ................................................................................................................................... 32 3.5 Oodnadatta ............................................................................................................................ 34 3.6 Yunta ...................................................................................................................................... 35 3.7 Water supply options ............................................................................................................ 37 3.8 Gaps in knowledge................................................................................................................ 40 3.9 Establishing criteria for infrastructure and governance investment..................................... 40 Chapter 4: Literature Review on Issues Associated With Remote Water Service Provision and, Where Available, Solutions ..................................................................................... 41 4.1 Challenges of equity in remote water services ..................................................................... 41 4.2 The varying capacity and willingness to pay for water ......................................................... 41 4.2.1 Solutions to the issue ............................................................................................................ 43 4.3 Issues associated with volunteer involvement in water service delivery ............................. 44 4 4.3.1 Solutions to the issue ............................................................................................................ 45 4.4 The need to rationalise the proliferation of outback water service providers ..................... 45 4.5 Options when water service provision is financially non-viable ........................................... 47 4.6 Can the remote area energy framework be applied to water services? ............................... 48 4.7 Issues of water quality and quantity ..................................................................................... 49 4.8 Fit-for-purpose supplies as an overarching solution ............................................................. 51 4.9 Establishing criteria for infrastructure and governance investment..................................... 53 Chapter 5: Literature Review on International and Interstate Regional Water Supplies and, Where Available, Application to Outback South Australia........................................ 54 5.1 What is a sustainable service in remote and rural contexts?................................................ 54 5.2 What is a sustainable service in the developed world: Rural Water Supply Program Western United States ......................................................................................................................... 56 5.3 What is happening elsewhere in regional Australia and how it applies to the Outback ...... 59 5.3.1 Regional towns with populations 2,000 to 15,000 ................................................................ 59 5.3.2 A solution ............................................................................................................................... 61 5.3.3 Regional areas with populations less than 2,000 .................................................................. 62 5.3.4 Case study: Regional alliances: Queensland Water Regional Alliance Program (QWRAP) ....... ............................................................................................................................................... 63 5.4 Establishing a criteria for infrastructure and governance investment .................................. 65 Chapter 6: Consolidation of Key Themes from the Literature Review and Stakeholder Consultation ................................................................................................................... 67 6.1 Identification of the aspirations of outback township members .........................................