Seven metropolitan Councils have joined forces to address water quality issues in their region and offer an information session on the project to coincide with World Water Day on March 20.

The Total Water Cycle Monitoring Project is investigating water quality and the effectiveness of management interventions.

The group undertaking the project is the Western Suburbs Regional Organisation of Councils (WESROC) – a group comprising the Cities of Subiaco and Nedlands, the Towns of Claremont, Cottesloe and Mosman Park and the Shire of Peppermint Grove in conjunction with the Town of Cambridge.

After two years of comprehensive research monitoring of storm water, groundwater and receiving environment water, the project raised a number of issues and resulted in initiatives including regular street sweeping to reduce debris in storm drain systems and a campaign to lower phosphate content in storm water and groundwater.

With a recent WA sustainability study highlighting the importance of shared services, WA Local Government Association President Cr Bill Mitchell said the project represented an example of how local Government could successful collaborate..

“This cooperative approach to issues of common concern is exactly what we see as the future of Local Government,” he said.

“Waterways and drains don’t always follow political boundaries and so it makes sense to approach water quality management from a regional perspective.

“This is a perfect example of the way in which a regional model for Local Government might be able to succeed, where member Councils gather data and establish priorities on a regional basis with resulting actions being taken on a
regional and local level.”

The Western Suburbs Regional Organisation of Councils will present a summary of the project including a discussion on water sensitive urban design and will conduct a tour of ‘water hotspots’ around the western suburbs on Thursday, March 20.