Foreword

The Hon Greg Hunt MP Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister for the Environment and Heritage. June 2006

Australia is in the midst of a water crisis, largely due to the failure of the states to invest in water infrastructure reform.

The major consequence of this failure is that the Australian states continue to dump almost 1800 billion litres of wastewater off our coasts each year while at the same time it is predicted
that Australia will face a water shortage of around 1200 billion litres by 2030.

This use of coastal zones for raw and partially treated sewage discharge is a 19th century practice that is simply unacceptable in the 21st century. The states must embrace water recycling for industry and agriculture as the first step to addressing our nation’s future water needs and ensuring the sustainability of our cities into the next century and beyond.

I commend any research and insight into water usage, and publications such as this help to encourage the public and all levels of government to recognise the importance of conserving our most valuable resource — water.

If we don’t change direction soon, we’ll end up where we are going - Prof. Irwin Corey