Community Connection

• Fact sheet / Industry Note

Using social norms as incentives for demand management

Overview Economists and policy makers use both economic and non-economic incentives to encourage consumers and providers to adopt new systems and technologies. This is particularly so for the environment sector, where incentives either do not exist or do not properly…

Project

• A1.3

Topics

• Community engagement
• Water literacy and behaviour change

Author

• CRCWSC

• Date Published: 15th Oct 2019

• Case Study

Dobsons Creek stormwater disconnection project

Dobsons Creek has the highest ecological value of any waterway within the Knox City Council area, and is one of the highest value waterways in the wider Dandenong Creek catchment. In 2010, Melbourne Water and Knox City Council initiated a…

Project

• D1.4

Topics

• Ecosystem health
• Governance and policy

Author

• CRCWSC

Locations

• VIC
• Australia

• Date Published: 9th Oct 2018

• Case Study

Currumbin Ecovillage wastewater management

The Currumbin Ecovillage is a 147 lot development over 270 acres of land in the Gold Coast Hinterland. The development contains community title blocks which range from 400 to 1400m2. A sewerage treatment plant located within the development accepts and…

Project

• D1.4

Topics

• Alternative water supplies
• Wastewater management and recycling
• Water literacy and behaviour change
• Water sensitive precincts

Author

• CRCWSC

Locations

• QLD
• Australia

• Date Published: 9th Oct 2018

• Case Study

Currumbin Ecovillage rainwater harvesting

The Currumbin Ecovillage is a 147 lot development over 270 acres of land in the Gold Coast Hinterland. The development contains community title blocks which range from 400 to 1400m2. All of the water supplied to the houses in the…

Project

• D1.4

Topics

• Alternative water supplies
• Rainwater and stormwater harvesting
• Water literacy and behaviour change
• Water sensitive homes and buildings
• Water sensitive precincts

Author

• CRCWSC

Locations

• QLD
• Australia

• Date Published: 9th Oct 2018

• Case Study

Enhancing our Dandenong Creek program

This case study delivers a range of waterway enhancements that the community helped to identify. Projects include daylighting a section of Dandenong Creek, creating new fish habitats, installing signage and public amenities, and working with industry to control pollution.  For…

Project

• D1.4

Topics

• Amenity and urban greening
• Community engagement
• Ecosystem health
• Waterway naturalisation

Author

• CRCWSC

Locations

• VIC
• Australia

• Date Published: 8th Oct 2018

• News

Keeping Brisbane’s iconic South Bank Parklands green

When drought made it difficult to keep Brisbane’s iconic South Bank Parklands green, the South Bank Corporation considered several new sources of non-potable water for irrigation. Stormwater harvesting was the preferred option, due to its practicality, cost and yield, and…

Location

• Australia

• Date Published: 22nd May 2018

• Technical reports

Getting the message right: The use of frames, community-friendly terminology and visuals

An important aspect of effectively engaging communities in a water sensitive future is to communicate messages using easy to understand terminology, appealing visuals and suitable message framing. The findings from Project A2.3 indicate that messages need to be tailored to…

Project

• A2.3

Topics

• Community engagement
• Stormwater treatment
• Water literacy and behaviour change

Authors

• Angela DEAN, Dr.
• Fiona NEWTON, Dr.
• Helen ROSS, Prof.
• Kelly FIELDING, Assoc. Prof.
• Tracy SCHULTZ

Location

• Australia

• Date Published: 16th Oct 2017

• Academic Publication

People who are elderly or have chronic conditions

Abstract What we need to do in local communities to support and protect the people most vulnerable to the impacts of climate change in Australia. Climate Change Adaptation for Health and Social Services addresses concerns from the health and community…

Project

• B3.1

Topic

• Urban heat island mitigation

Author

• Margaret LOUGHNAN, Dr.

Location

• Australia

• Date Published: 1st Sep 2015

• Academic Publication

The relationship between housing and heat wave resilience in older people

Abstract Older people have justifiably been highlighted as a high-risk group with respect to heat wave mortality and morbidity. However, there are older people living within the community who have developed adaptive and resilient environments around their home that provide…

Project

• B3.1

Topics

• Design and implementation
• Urban heat island mitigation

Authors

• Margaret LOUGHNAN, Dr.
• Nigel TAPPER, Prof.

Location

• VIC

• Date Published: 1st Sep 2015

• Academic Publication

Visitors’ perception of thermal comfort during extreme heat events at the Royal Botanic Garden Melbourne

Abstract Outdoor thermal comfort studies have mainly examined the perception of local residents, and there has been little work on how those conditions are perceived differently by tourists, especially tourists of diverse origins. This issue is important because it will…

Project

• B3.2

Topics

• Mitigating climate change impacts
• Urban heat island mitigation

Authors

• Cho Kwong LAM
• Margaret LOUGHNAN, Dr.
• Nigel TAPPER, Prof.

Location

• VIC

• Date Published: 6th Jan 2016

• Academic Publication

“A spirit of Bolshevism?” Perth’s water crisis of the 1920s

Abstract The early 1920s were a pivotal period in Perth's water history, marked by conflict over the inadequacies of the city's water supply. Only a small area of the city had reticulated water; most people relied on wells or rainwater…

Project

• A2.1

Topics

• Community engagement
• Governance and policy

Author

• Jenny GREGORY, Winthrop Prof.

Location

• WA

• Date Published: 1st Jan 2017

• Academic Publication

From water engineers to financial engineering: Water provision in Australia’s East Coast capital cities, 1945-2015

Abstract This article analyzes the provision of urban water in Australia's three east coast capital cities - Sydney, Brisbane and Melbourne - from the big dams of post-World War II years to recently completed desalination plants. We trace how major…

Project

• A2.1

Topics

• Community engagement
• Governance and policy
• Leadership and influence

Authors

• Peter SPEARRITT, Prof.
• Seamus O'HANLON, Assoc. Prof.

Location

• Australia

• Date Published: 1st Feb 2017

• Academic Publication

The allure of climate and water independence: desalination projects in Perth and San Diego

Abstract In the past decade, Perth and San Diego have both added desalination technology to their suite of water resources. In both contexts, the "independence" that desalination purportedly offers is a shorthand for diversification and drought-proofing in places where future…

Project

• A2.1

Topics

• Economics and business case
• Governance and policy
• Leadership and influence
• Water literacy and behaviour change

Author

• Ruth MORGAN, Dr.

Location

• WA

• Date Published: 13th Feb 2017

• Academic Publication

Lawnscaping Perth: Water supply, gardens, and scarcity, 1890-1925

Abstract While Perth's climate has been getting drier for at least four decades, its citizens maintain an ongoing commitment to year-round green lawns and gardens (or "lawnscapes"), and a resistance to water restrictions that is more pronounced than in other…

Project

• A2.1

Topics

• Community engagement
• Governance and policy

Author

• Andrea GAYNOR, Assoc. Prof.

Location

• WA

• Date Published: 16th Feb 2017

• Academic Publication

Overcoming abundance: Social capital and managing floods in inner Melbourne during the nineteenth century

Abstract Before effective drainage and flood protection systems were built in the early twentieth century, areas of inner Melbourne close to the Yarra River were prone to flooding. An overabundance of water and a need to limit its impact on…

Project

• A2.1

Topics

• Flood resilience
• Governance and policy
• Urban waterways

Authors

• Lionel FROST, Assoc. Prof.
• Meredith DOBBIE, Dr.
• Ruth MORGAN, Dr.

Location

• VIC

• Date Published: 14th Feb 2017

• Academic Publication

Water technology and the urban environment: Water, sewerage, and disease in San Francisco and Melbourne before 1920

Abstract The challenges cities face in supplying safe water and disposing effectively of sewerage and wastewater are affected by historical and environmental conditions and the long-standing effects of choices of infrastructure. This article provides case studies of two similar cities,…

Project

• A2.1

Topics

• Flood resilience
• Governance and policy
• Regulation and legislation
• Stormwater treatment
• Urban Metabolism
• Urban planning (statutory, strategic, land use)
• Urban waterways
• Wastewater management and recycling

Author

• Lionel FROST, Assoc. Prof.

Location

• Australia

• Date Published: 12th Feb 2017

• Academic Publication

Water and the making of Californian and Australian cities: Introduction

Abstract The articles in this special issue draw on examples from Californian and Australian history to consider how people have met the challenges of securing adequate water supplies and managing water issues in urban settings. Through studies in which water,…

Project

• A2.1

Topics

• Flood resilience
• Governance and policy
• Urban planning (statutory, strategic, land use)
• Urban waterways

Author

• Lionel FROST, Assoc. Prof.

Location

• VIC

• Date Published: 14th Feb 2017

• Fact sheet / Industry Note

Changing water habits after drought: Why garden watering was easier to change than showering

Summary Past experience has shown that communities can change habits and reduce water use during times of crisis but a critical question is whether these habits persist after the crisis and why? Social practice theory can be used to answer…

Project

• A2.1

Topics

• Community engagement
• Water literacy and behaviour change

Authors

• Jo LINDSAY, Prof.
• Sian SUPSKI

Locations

• WA
• VIC
• QLD

• Date Published: 24th Jan 2017

• Fact sheet / Industry Note

CRCWSC Industry Note (2016): How can social norms be leveraged to promote water sensitive cities?

What innovative, non-price approaches are available to manage water demand? How can current conservation programs be modified to better promote water savings, particularly amongst high-use households? Is there a way to harness people’s pre-existing beliefs and motivations in order to…

Project

• A1.3

Topic

• Economics and business case

Author

• Lata GANGADHARAN, Prof.

• Date Published: 1st Dec 2016

• Fact sheet / Industry Note

CRCWSC Industry Note (2016): Water and the Australian city: lessons from history

Most Australians live in suburban, single-family, detached houses. This historical and continuing housing preference means that providing water and sewerage services are expensive. Australians have traditionally been profligate with water, but have always shown remarkable willingness to adapt water usage…

Project

• A2.1

Topic

• Community engagement

Authors

• Jo LINDSAY, Prof.
• Seamus O'HANLON, Assoc. Prof.
• Sian SUPSKI

Locations

• WA
• VIC
• QLD

• Date Published: 1st Dec 2016