Indicator /

Water consumption

Indicator
HS6: Water consumption

The ACT and Queanbeyan’s total water consumption has remained fairly consistent since 2012–13 at around 50,000 megalitres annually despite population growth. Between 2001–02 and 2017–18, residential per capita water use dropped from 124 kilolitres per year to 78 kilolitres litres per year, a decrease of around 37%. Residential supply is responsible for most of the water use in the ACT, accounting for around 60% of the total supplied annually.

Condition & trend
  • Poor
  • Fair
  • Good
Data quality
High
Indicator assessment legend
Condition
  • Poor
  • Fair
  • Good

Environmental condition is healthy across the ACT, OR pressure likely to have negligible impact on environmental condition/human health.

  • Poor
  • Fair
  • Good

Environmental condition is neither positive or negative and may be variable across the ACT, OR pressure likely to have limited impact on environmental condition/human health.

  • Poor
  • Fair
  • Good

Environmental condition is under significant stress, OR pressure likely to have significant impact on environmental condition/ human health.

  • Poor
  • Unknown
  • Good

Data is insufficient to make an assessment of status and trends.

Trend
Trending arrow

Improving

Trending arrow

Deteriorating

Stable

?

Unclear

Data quality
High

Adequate high-quality evidence and high level of consensus

Moderate

Limited evidence or limited consensus

Low

Evidence and consensus too low to make an assessment

N/A

Assessments of status, trends and data quality are not appropriate for the indicator

Background

This indicator examines the consumption of potable water in the ACT. Whilst some groundwater is used in the ACT for non-potable water supply, it is a small resource compared with surface water, and current use does not represent a risk to groundwater resources. Therefore, the use and availability of groundwater resources is not included in this indicator.

Water consumption is determined by a range of factors including population, urban densification, changes in household usage, restrictions on use due to water availability, changes in demand due to rainfall, and water use by commercial, industrial and agricultural sectors (within consumptive entitlements).

Potable water consumption in the ACT and Queanbeyan has remained fairly consistent since 2012–13, at around 50,000 megalitres per year (Figure HS35). This consistent use has remained despite population growth in the ACT of around 1.7% per year. However, usage in 2017–18 was 54,000 megalitres, the highest volume over the past 10 years. This increase has been driven by hotter and drier weather conditions and is not considered indicative of an increasing trend in water usage.

Figure HS35: Water consumption in the ACT by user, 2008–09 to 2017–18.
Data sourced from: Icon Water Notes: Non-residential users include the commercial and industrial sectors, hospitals and schools, city parks, and government buildings. Other includes non-potable water, raw water, leakage, and the North Canberra Effluent Reuse Scheme

The consistency in total annual water use since 2012–13 has occurred due to a decrease in per capita water use (Figure HS36). Between 2001–02 and 2017–18, per capita water use dropped from 124 kilolitres per year, to 78 kilolitres per year, a decrease of around 37%. Although there are annual variations in annual per capita water use, the level has remained between 70 to 80 kilolitres per year since 2007–08. Reasons for the decrease in per capita consumption include:

Figure HS36: Annual per capita water use in the ACT, 2001–02 to 2017–18.
Data sourced from: Icon Water

The ACT uses over 90% of the supplied water, with Queanbeyan using around 8% annually. Residential supply is responsible for most water use in the ACT, accounting for around 60% of the total supplied annually, which has remained consistent since 2008–09 (Figure HS35). This means that most gains in water use efficiency can be made at the household level. Non-residential uses typically accounted for between 20% and 25% of the total water supplied annually (non-residential usage includes the commercial and industrial sectors, city parks, hospitals and schools, and government buildings).

Case studies