Riverina Urban Nature Strip Lawn Replacement
Riverina Water County Council
Funding:$455,000
About the project
Riverina Water residential customers use over 40% of their annual potable water irrigating lawn. Residential suburbs typically have 300m2 of lawn, of which an average of 50m2 per lot is on the nature strip with pop-up sprinklers at most new households.
This project pioneers profound outdoor demand management. The aim is to change the culture.
The rebate is to encourage householders to replace irrigated lawn on their highly visible nature strip cost effectively. Nurseries and garden contractors will offer different products and particularly the plant species. The benefits will translate to the front and back lawns and further improve the outcome relative to the investment.
Project benefits
With a take up rate of 1000 households the water saving will be 52 ML per year or 0.5% of demand. This will increase if this translates to all household nature strips it is 1248 ML per year or 10% of demand. Ultimately if taken up by all residential lawn areas it is 4860ML per year or 41% of demand.
The community will greatly benefit - firstly by matching their use with the level of sustainable supply and secondly by preventing to decimation of their residential environment under severe restrictions in the next severe drought.
The combination of the rebate and the resident's investment will also provide a return in reduced water bills.
Further information
Further information on this project may be obtained by contacting the Riverina Water County Council directly on 02 6922 0608.
The Strengthening Basin Communities program is funded by the Australian Government's Water for the Future initiative.