Question Time

NATIONAL WATER WEEK

Ms THOMPSON (Reynell) (14:15): My question is to the Minister for Water Security. Can the minister inform the house about events planned for National Water Week?

The Hon. K.A. MAYWALD (Chaffey—Minister for the River Murray, Minister for Water Security) (14:15): Yes, and I thank the member for Reynell for her question. It is great to be celebrating National Water Week. The South Australian government is having a strong participation in the week, which starts from Sunday 18 October and goes through to Saturday 24 October.

National Water Week is the premier water awareness event in Australia, inviting water utilities, government agencies, councils, environmental groups and businesses to think about how they can bring their water awareness and conservation activities to the fore during the week. This year's themes are that: the nation's water supplies are limited; collectively our water comes from a number of different sources; we all share water; and we are all responsible for our water future. These themes are at the core of the state government's Water for Good Plan and provide a good platform to further promote the water sensitive message that this government is already promoting.

Key agencies of the government, principally the Office of Water Security and SA Water, are participating in the program. We are promoting the message that diversity of our water resources will take the state forward and that we all as individuals can do a great deal to conserve water. We will commence National Water Week on Sunday 18 October, with an opportunity for all South Australians to visit the Adelaide desalination project and newly commissioned visitors centre, which will bring to life the desalination process and how valuable the desalination plant will be to the greater diversity of the metropolitan area's water resources in the years to come and its contribution to reducing our reliance on the River Murray.

The Water for Good team will also have a stall in Rundle Mall from Monday 19 October to Wednesday 21 October, where we will be handing out the very popular four-minute shower timers, attached to the equally popular personal water savings plan. It is a small booklet full of water saving tips and available rebates, and it is suitable for attachment to the household fridge so that people can be reminded of these important conservation messages. We will also be running the Swap and Save showerhead exchange program from the site where people will be able to exchange their existing showerheads for a water efficient alternative, and the details of full terms and conditions will be available on the Water for Good website, which is www.waterforgood.sa.gov.au.

It should also be noted that many local councils are also participating in the showerhead exchange program and some have coordinated their participation with National Water Week. We will also be running a daily top water saving tips competition from Monday to Friday, with the best tips being published with the daily weather in the paper. National Water Week is an excellent opportunity for the community to learn more about water conservation, to exchange ideas and knowledge, and to see first-hand the significant work being undertaken by the government to secure our water future.