integrated water management (IWM) plan to improve sustainable water use: edendale
Case study: Innovative strategies to optimise water resources at Edendale Community Environment Farm
Wave Consulting Australia was engaged by Edendale Community Environment Farm, part of Nillumbik Shire Council to develop an Integrated Water Management Plan with the end goal of improving sustainable water use.
IWM plan
Wurundjeri Woi Wurrung lands, north east Melbourne
Key facts
Farm consumes 2.5 million litres of potable water used per year
2 dams & 8 rainwater tanks to conserve potable water
The problem
Edendale Community and Environment Farm is a unique community asset and a central location for the Nillumbik community to learn more about environmental issues. It also offers plants to buy from their nursery. In fact, the nursery continued production over all of Covid lockdowns and supported the community in gardening and landscaping at home.
The farm want to take a more sustainable approach to water use for the farm and their community, and has a vision for ‘net zero water’. As the farm was using a significant amount of potable water (2.5 million litres per year), they were looking to identify new opportunities to reduce this drastically.
Edendale came to Wave to conduct a review of all water appliances, buildings, swales, rainwater tanks, dams and the link with the nearby Diamond Creek.
The solution
Wave Consulting conducted a thorough analysis of Edendale Farm's water consumption, involving an in-depth review of water bills, climate data, and water demand modelling.
Based on this analysis, valuable advice was provided, encompassing several key recommendations to enhance water efficiency. These included optimising water usage for appliances and toilets, enhancing the functionality of existing rainwater tanks through additional connections and reinstallation, and potentially expanding the overall rainwater tank capacity on the farm.
Additionally, the report identified two closely located dams as a promising opportunity for water harvesting from the top 100-300 mm of the dam water level. Lastly, the report proposed the implementation of measures such as reusing greenhouse watering and adopting stormwater harvesting techniques to further reduce the reliance on potable water.
The outcome
The provided Integrated Water Management Plan offered comprehensive guidance to the Edendale Farm Community, fostering a profound comprehension of their existing water consumption patterns. It also emphasised the significance of leveraging the surrounding environment to ensure water sustainability.
This plan not only shed light on their current water utilisation practices but also presented innovative strategies to optimise their water resources and promote long-term environmental equilibrium.
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