Engineering solutions company GHD defines ‘water risks’ as storms, droughts and floods in its report Aquanomics: The economics of water risk and future resilience report.
Desalination, green hydrogen, water recycling, ‘smart’ irrigation and similar high-tech and high-cost ideas are brought up as possible solutions by GHD.
GHD Australian water market leader Lindsey Brown said a better attitude to water was needed to stop the $425 million loss.
“It’s time to move away from viewing water as a commodity to be controlled, and instead recognise its intrinsic value,” Ms Brown said.
“Water is part of a natural cycle, the balance of which must be restored and maintained if we are to live sustainably and to prosper.”
Ms Brown said government had a key role to play in managing the transition to better water management methods.
“Investment programs, such as the National Water Grid Fund, are the first step but infrastructure can only be part of the solution,” she said.
For coastal cities Ms Brown predicts desalination will be “crucial” in easing water stress.
For inland Australians, Ms Brown predicts wastewater treatment and water recycling will become more important, helping processors purify water for drinking and for use by power stations, industry and agriculture.
The GHD report is an economic model only, and simply predicts how much sectors might lose to droughts, floods and storms between 2022 and 2050 across seven different countries.
Australia’s $452 billion shortfall translates to a 0.6 per cent annual loss.
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