Orange City Council in central western NSW is one of a number of regional councils to roll out smart water systems that provide real time insights into water use and encourage residents to become more water efficient.

Orange City first began investigating the use of smart water meters during the 2019 drought, which saw the city’s water storage drop to almost 21 per cent.

Water leakage was also accounting for 10 per cent of the City’s water loss.

The digitally-connected smart meters record the amount of water a property is using and sends the information electronically to Council and registered consumers.

The meters can detect leaks, alert occupants to periods of unusually high water consumption and provide them with insights into their water use via email or SMS.

Property owners are also able to register to access water usage information online through the Orange City Council website.

The technology transmits hourly readings, which enable the data to be processed in real time.

Successful trial

Orange City’s top 250 water users  – mostly commercial and industrial properties – took part in an initial smart meter trial, as well as a small number of residential properties.

The test was so successful that Council has continued to integrate smart water meters into the network via water installations in new buildings, and through its water meter replacement program.

Since the first release across Orange in 2020, 650 homes and businesses have had smart meters installed.

Council says 2,000 more smart water meters will be installed b this financial year, the most since the rollout of the new equipment began 18 months ago.

Boosting water awareness

Infrastructure Policy Committee Chair Cr Jack Evans says the new meters have been welcomed by residents.

“Residents are telling us how efficient and convenient this system is, that they can go online anytime and find out how much water they’re using”, he said.

“Our community was very conscious about water use during drought but when the weather brings months of rain they can lose that focus. The smart meters are a great tool to help boost awareness of how we use water all year round.”

The water meter replacement program is free for residents and will be progressively rolled out citywide over the next five years.

Smart meters have been used by water utilities and councils around Australia, including Dubbo, Bundaberg, Cassowary Coast and Bathurst Regional Councils.