Other related projects
There are a number of projects that are closely related and complementary
to the work being carried out for AWR 2005. These include:
Australian Water Data Infrastructure Project
The Australian Water Data Infrastructure Project (AWDIP) was established under
the national component of the Natural Heritage Trust to facilitate national
assessments of Australia 's water resources and to support ongoing water reforms.
This will be achieved through the ongoing development of a comprehensive and
accessible national water information framework.
Following the completion of the National Land and Water Resources Audit in
2000, the Australian Government Department of Agriculture, Fisheries & Forestry
(DAFF) took responsibility for managing the water data theme, which commenced
under the Audit.
The
Executive Steering Committee for Australia's Water Resources Information
(ESCAWRI) is responsible for managing AWDIP. Membership of ESCAWRI
includes DAFF, the Australian Government Department of Environment and Heritage,
a representative from each state and territory government and a representative
each from the Bureau of Rural Sciences, the National Land and Water Resources
Audit, the CSIRO, the Australian Bureau of Statistics, the Bureau of Meteorology,
and the Murray-Darling Basin Commission.
Work currently being undertaken by AWDIP includes a comprehensive study to
identify stakeholders, their roles, responsibilities, data requirements and
information priorities, and a report on existing water data standards, protocols
and infrastructure.
Based on this work, ESCAWRI will be responsible for the development and implementation
of an investment strategy for the AWDIP for 2003-06 to facilitate the ongoing
development of a comprehensive and accessible national water data information
system, covering surface water and groundwater resources and including data
on water availability, quality and use.
Water 2010
Water
2010 is a project being coordinated and managed by the Bureau of Rural Sciences
with assistance from a range of Australian, state and territory government
agencies. This project is designed to capture information on the water balance
at a variety of scales and investigate the impacts of likely or desired changes
in land use, population, climate, and water policies and practices on Australia
's water resources. The consequences for communities, industries and regions
can then also be examined.
Initially, the primary purpose of Water 2010 is to address the information
needs of the Commission with respect to specific components of the NWI. In
addition, it will be used as a tool to provide information to the DAFF to develop
sound water reform policy in a changing physical and social environment in
Australia .
Over time, information and tools arising from the project will have the potential
to assist a range of other users and audiences. Stakeholders include water
policy development and programme areas at all levels of government, the Murray-Darling
Basin Commission, The National Land and Water Resources Audit, catchment management
authorities, landholders and the general community.
ABS water statistics programme
The Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) has produced a number of water related
products based on rigorous data collation and synthesis, surveying and analysis.
These include the Water Account, Australia (ABS Cat. No. 4610.0)
and Water Use on Australian Farms (ABS Cat. No. 4618.0). Two editions
of each publication have been produced. The first edition of the Water
Account, Australia covered the reference period 1993-94 to 1996-97, and
the second edition covered the year 2000-01. The Water account is scheduled
to be produced at four-yearly intervals and the 2004-05 edition is currently
in production. Water Use on Australian Farms is an annual publication,
the first edition of which was released for the 2002-03
reference year.
Apart from these reports, information on water use varies considerably in
terms of content, level of detail, reporting period, frequency of collection,
and is usually not intended to be comparable at a national level. Data are
also often inconsistent or incomplete. The different data sources also collect
information using different terminologies, standards and concepts. Most information
is presented by water providers and is not spatially specific. This makes collating,
comparing and integrating data extremely difficult.
Other organisations that have collected data at the national level for particular
industry sectors or for a specific region(s) that crosses state boundaries
include the following:
- The Australian
National Committee on Irrigation and Drainage produces an annual Australian
Irrigation Water Provider Benchmarking Data Report. This presents the results
of an Australian National Committee on Irrigation and Drainage survey that
covers around 70 of the larger irrigation water authorities in Australia
.
- The Water Services Association
Australia produces an annual publication, entitled WSAA Facts ,
which presents information on some 28 water metropolitan water providers.
- On a more regional basis, the Murray-Darling
Basin Commission produces the annual Water Audit Monitoring
Report ,
which provides very detailed information about water in the Murray-Darling
Basin, including the Cap compliance, water use, accuracy of water use figures,
climatic overview for the water year, water availability through allocations,
off-allocations and water trading, storage losses, and groundwater use.
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