Waterwise Golf
The Waterwise Golf Program
The Water Wise Golf Course Program commenced in 2013 and is a joint initiative between the Golf Course Superintendents Association of Western Australia and the Department of Water and Environmental Regulation.
Facilitated by the golf course irrigation sector, the program has developed a set of guidelines and targets aimed at achieving long-term water use efficiency to support and promote best irrigation practices within the industry. For this reason the program is linked and reported within the Kep Katitjin – Gabi Kaadadjan – Waterwise Perth Action Plan 2, an initiative by Government to promote sustainable water use and adaption to reduced rainfall associated with climate change.
The Waterwise Golf Course Program and digital manual has been developed to guide participants through the technical and compliance activities required to meet criteria under each of the three levels (bronze, silver and gold) assessed and audited under the program and provide evidence of the participant’s ability to undertake the related tasks under each section.
The manual incorporates management practices endorsed by the Golf Course Superintendents Association of Western Australia, the Sports Turf Association of Western Australia and the Department of Water and Environmental Regulation. It also includes information relating to the development of a Water Conservation and Efficiency Plan that may be required as part of an operating strategy associated with a 5C licence to take water under the Rights in Water and Irrigation Act 1914 criteria three (Prepare an irrigation water efficiency plan based the template set out in the Department of Water Operational Policy 5.08) for Bronze Level.
Where information is required to meet criteria three, data can be entered into the relevant section using the hyperlink provided and for submission to the department using the Water Online Service or via email to the relevant Regional Office.
How is the groundwater system performing?
Rainfall, streamflow and recharge to groundwater have been declining across south-west Western Australia since the 1970s. Most of our rain falls in winter and this is when groundwater is recharged, so when there is less winter rain there is less recharge to groundwater.
Rainfall has reduced faster than changes to groundwater use and this has shifted the groundwater system out of balance. High groundwater use and lower rainfall have resulted in declining groundwater levels and drying of wetlands.
In 2020–21, water levels at 16 out of 30 representative wetland and vegetation sites were lower than the criteria levels set by the Minister for the Environment in Ministerial statement no. 819 to protect the groundwater system and dependent ecosystems. Ministerial compliance reports can be found on the Department of Water and Environmental Regulation’s website.
A system out of balance also puts water quality at risk in some locations. Enough groundwater needs to flow out to the river and coast to prevent saltwater intrusion into aquifers. Saline water has already moved inland in the Superficial aquifer in some places. Water quality can also deteriorate inland if pumping draws the watertable down to expose acid sulfate soils. Low groundwater levels have already caused acidification and associated ecological impacts at some of the wetlands we monitor.
If we act together to rebalance the system, we can adjust to changes in rainfall, increase water security and reduce adverse impacts on water users and the environment.
Gnangara Mound Water Levels
The Gnangara Mound is the common name for the Superficial aquifer located north of Perth. The watertable in the aquifer forms a groundwater mound –rainwater recharges groundwater at a higher rate at the top of the mound, and then water flows horizontally through the aquifer, ultimately discharging into the rivers and the ocean. In areas where they are connected, groundwater can move vertically between the Superficial aquifer and the deeper Leederville and Yarragadee aquifers.
Groundwater levels across the Gnangara Mound have generally been in decline for the last 40 years because of decreasing rainfall, continued use of groundwater for a range of important uses, and pine plantations limiting recharge. This means more than 1000 gigalitres (1000 billion litres) of groundwater storage has been lost from the Superficial aquifer since 1980.
For more information on the rates of groundwater level and storage decline please visit the Department of Water and Environmental Regulation’s Gnangara Mound water levels status land page.
Gnangara Groundwater Use
The Gnangara system currently provides almost half of all the water used in the Perth metropolitan area each year. It supplies water for agriculture, parks, ovals and gardens on the Gnangara system, and water for Perth’s scheme supply – distributed by the Water Corporation. Local councils, schools and sporting clubs take about 45 GL a year to irrigate parks, sports ovals and other public open spaces.
Gnangara groundwater also supports environmental features such as lakes, wetlands and bushland areas.
Gnangara groundwater is Perth’s lowest cost water source and the economic benefits have been estimated at a total net present value of $6.7 billion, which is equivalent to about $400 million a year.