More funding and smarter solutions are urgently needed to address Australia’s struggling water infrastructure systems. By Cameron Cooper
Stuart Khan doubts that many politicians see major underground water and sewer infrastructure projects as media-friendly projects.
“Nobody cuts a ribbon on a sewer,” says Professor Khan, head of School of Civil Engineering at the University of Sydney. “Big dams are sexy and governments like to talk about them, but not the pumps and pipes and sewers.”
Yet those less-visible systems are under growing strain. Ageing assets, climate change and rapid population growth are placing increasing pressure on Australia’s water infrastructure, with experts warning that significant investment and redevelopment are overdue. According to Infrastructure Australia, many urban and regional water and wastewater networks are nearing the end of their operational life, raising the risk of system failures, leaks, contamination and service disruptions. Similar challenges are emerging globally.
Professor Khan says the consequences extend beyond inconvenience. “If our water supplies start to fail, we’ll have more public health concerns. We’ll have more waterborne outbreaks and more underlying levels of infection.” The issue is already affecting housing development. In parts of southwest and northwest Sydney, for example, water supply infrastructure is struggling to keep pace with rapid residential construction. “That has a big impact both on the value of those homes that are built and then just simply on the quality of life,” Professor Khan says.
CHALLENGES AHEAD
Water infrastructure is fundamental to economic activity, supporting agriculture, energy generation and industrial processes. However, climate change is making supply less reliable.
Declining rainfall, rising temperatures and more frequent extreme weather 22 CSS F.A.T. MAG events are reducing the dependability of traditional water sources. Future demand will only intensify these pressures. Australia’s shift towards high-value, low-emission industries
such as green hydrogen and data centres is expected to increase water use significantly.
Dr Nicholas Fearnley, head of Global Construction at Oxford Economics, notes that water construction activity has picked up in recent years, particularly driven by Sydney Water, Australia’s largest water and wastewater service provider.
However, he expects a much larger injection of investment. “It seems mostly to be driven by Sydney Water at the moment, but we do think that there’s a significant wave coming because of population growth,” says Dr Fearnley, pointing to likely rising demand along the east coast through the 2040s and 2050s.
Governments are increasing investment in regional and high-growth areas, but in some cases the response may already be lagging demand. In Adelaide, for instance, existing water infrastructure constraints have begun to affect residential construction.
Dr Fearnley warns that delays risk broader economic consequences. Faster, more coordinated investment is needed to “avoid bottlenecks that could limit broader economic growth”.
There are signs of progress. Infrastructure Australia has identified nationally significant projects, including Perth water security upgrades, the Adelaide River Off-Stream Water Storage project in the Northern Territory, and major wastewater upgrades in South Australia and
Tasmania.
DESALINATION BOOM
Infrastructure Australia has also warned that water constraints could increasingly limit housing supply and economic growth if infrastructure fails to keep pace.
In response, desalination is re emerging as a key solution. Oxford Economics expects a construction boom as water authorities expand desalination capacity to address looming shortages. Population growth alone is projected to add an extra 190 gigalitres of annual household water demand across major cities by 2035, while the rapid expansion of data centres is likely to further increase urban water consumption.
At the same time, declining rainfall in major population centres is making existing systems more vulnerable. Desalination offers a climate-independent water source, improving supply reliability regardless of weather conditions.
Dr Fearnley says this has renewed interest among water authorities, with many planning to expand desalination capacity over the coming decade Less popular, but also an option, are Advanced Water Treatment Plants.
These facilities recycle wastewater through multiple treatment stages, removing contaminants and producing high-quality water suitable for reuse.
“So it’s this idea that instead of just taking water, using it once and then putting it into the sewage network that we recycle the water, which is something that happens in other countries around the world,” Dr Fearnley says.
However, public resistance remains a barrier, with many Australians reluctant to accept recycled water for drinking.
WORKFORCE AND INVESTMENT GAPS
Underinvestment in water infrastructure has broader economic implications.
Professor Khan says the lack of major projects is hurting construction firms. “The construction sector’s missing out on a lot of work that they should be engaging in.”
At the same time, a skills shortage is deepening. Fewer students are entering engineering, and Australia relies heavily on skilled migration to meet workforce needs. “If we didn’t have the skilled migration, we would have a huge deficit already,” Professor Khan says.
Dr Fearnley adds that the construction workforce is ageing rapidly, with about a quarter of workers aged over 55 and expected to retire within 15 years. Without enough younger workers entering the industry, labour shortages will persist.
THE PATH FORWARD
Addressing these challenges will require a mix of investment, policy reform and technological innovation.
Governments and industry are pursuing a range of strategies, including expanding desalination, increasing water recycling, developing groundwater replenishment projects and upgrading wastewater treatment plants. However, experts stress that better planning and coordination are just as critical.
Professor Khan argues for more integrated urban water management and closer collaboration between governments, utilities and the private sector. He also points to the political difficulty of funding reform.
Sydney Water’s proposal to increase customer prices by about 50 per cent to fund infrastructure upgrades has faced strong backlash, discouraging political support. “So, we are kicking the can down the road,” he says.
Technology could help ease some pressure. Advances in artificial intelligence and machine learning are improving digital monitoring systems,
enabling utilities to detect leaks earlier and optimise network performance.
“These new technologies can help us to predict where failure is occurring and will be very helpful in predicting where end of lifetime and value likelihood is occurring,” Professor Khan says.
Technology alone will not solve the problem, however. Dr Fearnley emphasises that sustained government investment remains essential.
“So, it really is the government that finances works with the private sector to be able to get these projects off the ground,” he says. “I think government plays a key role.”
While innovation can help extend the life of existing assets and improve efficiency, it cannot replace the need for new infrastructure.
“We do need to build more infrastructure,” Dr Fearnley says.
Photography: NATCHUDA911 – 123RF
