Water by Design
Better managing and protecting urban waterways by empowering government, industry, and communities.
Water by Design works with individuals and organisations to identify and fill knowledge gaps and facilitate the adoption of improved practices in sustainable urban water managementWater by Design works with individuals and organisations to identify and fill knowledge gaps and facilitate the adoption of the improved practice in sustainable urban water management.
Water by Design is one of the leading sustainable water management capacity-building initiatives in Australia.
An initiative of Healthy Land & Water, the initiative is building the capacity of a wide range of stakeholder organisations and groups to ensure they are delivering the world's best sustainable urban water management solutions.
The initiative delivers evidence-based capacity-building and policy support services and products including training, guidelines, and technical resources for practitioners in industry and government, and manages communities of practice in South East Queensland and the Great Barrier Reef region. The program is focused on building regionally consistent approaches and encouraging innovative practices.
Through its Living Waterways program and Clean Up program, the initiative is delivering outcomes for water quality, biodiversity, and community engagement with urban waterways and green spaces.
What we are doing
- Based in South East Queensland and active across the state.
- Established in 2005 to deliver capacity-building and extension programs.
- Supporting urban water practitioners from water service providers, state and local government, the building and construction industry, consultancies, and regional partnerships.
Measuring success
By facilitating information exchange, networking, and constructive debate, practitioners are motivated to deliver high-quality urban environments.
The Water by Design program aims to deliver:
- Improved skills and knowledge via a comprehensive suite of best practice resources and training.
- A strengthened organisation capacity with forums for local government officers to foster collaboration, information sharing, and positive development outcomes.
- Guided regulatory reforms such as flexible arrangements for stormwater management, providing cost savings and benchmark protection targets.
- Improved protection for urban waterways whilst enabling the sustainable use of waterways and water resources.
- Improved protection and restoration of urban nature and biodiversity and reduced pollution of urban waterways.
- Increased local community awareness, value, and stewardship of urban waterways and green spaces.
Why this project is important
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In 2004 and 2005, Healthy Land & Water's Ecosystem Health Monitoring Program (EHMP) identified ‘diffuse source pollutant loads’ as a major impact on the Moreton Bay region. The Water by Design initiative was developed to address this by supporting the implementation of sustainable urban water management. The program delivers sustainable water management outcomes across catchments and regions affected by pollutants to protect and restore the natural water cycle. With the increasing importance of capacity building within the Australian water industry, is it imperative that the industry is growing in resources and skill development respectively. |
Project snapshot
| Project name: | Water by Design |
| Project manager: | Karen Toms, Healthy Land & Water |
| Catchment: | South East Queensland |
| Timing: | Ongoing since 2005 |
| Budget: | |
| Partnerships: |
A Healthy Land & Water initiative, in partnership with the Queensland Government Department of Environment and Science, Australian Government Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water, and local governments across South East Queensland and the Great Barrier Reef region. The Water by Design initiative has strong strategic support from two important committees who provide direction and expertise to ensure the program is fit-for-purpose and is delivering on its aim of enabling the delivery of best practice sustainable urban water management. Committees include local government representatives from all councils in South East Queensland and the Great Barrier Reef region, the Queensland Government Department of Environment and Science, water utilities, Seqwater, LGAQ, and the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority. |
What's next
There is huge potential to build on the successful work.
Project collaborators
A Healthy Land & Water initiative, in partnership with the Queensland Government Department of Environment and Science, Australian Government Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water, and local governments across South East Queensland and the Great Barrier Reef region.
The Water by Design initiative has strong strategic support from two important committees who provide direction and expertise to ensure the program is fit-for-purpose and is delivering on its aim of enabling the delivery of best practice sustainable urban water management. Committees include local government representatives from all councils in South East Queensland and the Great Barrier Reef region, the Queensland Government Department of Environment and Science, water utilities, Seqwater, LGAQ, and the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority.
