Integrated resource planning for the integrated water supply scheme for: expert panel examining Kimberly water supply options

Through the State Water Strategy the Government of Western Australia has committed to using Integrated Resource Planning (IRP) in its water allocation and licensing processes (Government of Western Australia, 2003). There is currently limited experience in using IRP methods within the state and methods used elsewhere may need to be adapted to take account of the specific water environment within Western Australia, especially the relative complexity of the states water sources, the high outdoor use component and self-supply options such as domestic bores. Improved management of existing water resources (e.g. catchment thinning, plantation management) to release more water are also not well covered in many past uses of the method. The Water Services Association of Australia (WSAA) commissioned and recommends the use of an End Use Model (since renamed, the Supply and Demand Planning Model) to detail how water is used on both a customer sector (e.g. domestic, commercial) and end use basis (e.g. toilet flushing, garden watering). Such a model allows water suppliers to better predict future demand (forecasting) and to develop options to meet a future water supply demand balance (backcasting). Importantly, it allows water supply and demand management options to be compared on a consistent economic basis. Alternative methods of assessing supply and demand options often only consider the financial impact on the water service provider, whereas the government needs to also consider the impact on consumers and on the general communit