Qld: Neew Queensland homes must meet water saving targets

AAP General News (Australia)
12-16-2006
Qld: Neew Queensland homes must meet water saving targets

BRISBANE, Dec 16 AAP - Water saving devices will be mandatory for all new houses to
be built in south-east Queensland.

From January 1 next year, housing plans will need to meet water saving targets before
they are granted building approval, Local Government and Planning Minister Andrew Fraser
said today.

New detached houses in the south-east corner must include enough water saving devices
to aim for a saving of 70 kilolitres a year, while terrace houses and townhouses must
aim to achieve savings of 42 kilolitres a year, Mr Fraser said.

These figures are based on the average water consumption in a home of 2.5 people.

Installing a 5,000 litre rainwater tank for detached houses or a 3,000 litre tank for
semi-detached houses would be an easy way to achieve these water savings, Mr Fraser said.

"Importantly there is a provision in parts of the state where these sorts of arrangements
are not deemed necessarily practical, (for example) areas with very low rainfall," Mr
Fraser said.

"Another flexibility in arrangements is that councils can certainly opt for higher
targets than these."

The water saving targets are part of the state government's strategy to ensure long-term
water supply, Mr Fraser said.

"Queensland is currently experiencing one of the worst droughts in our history," he said.

"That, combined with climate change and population growth, has placed our water resources
under enormous pressure."

AAP rl/goc/nf

KEYWORD: WATER QLD

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