Publications

Sustainable Buildings Saving Billions

Sustainable Buildings Saving Billions

Sustainable Buildings Saving Billions An alternative water strategy for Sydney Peter J Coombes and Michael Smit Systems research and modelling examined the water futures for Greater Sydney. Business as Usual will increase the demand for water in Sydney by 80% by 2050,...

On Demand Rainwater Harvesting Course

On Demand Rainwater Harvesting Course

Our On-Demand Course Has Officially Launched Get the essential tools, methods, and technical know-how to design and maintain home-scale rainwater harvesting systems. by Michelle Avis and Prof Peter J Coombes Water is a crucial resource increasingly under stress. Yet...

Alternative Water Plan for Sydney

Alternative Water Plan for Sydney

Alternative Water Plan for Sydney Peter J Coombes, Michael Smit and Michael Barry Sydney is the premier Australian city and it faces profound urban water challenges. Sydney must manage its infrastructure efficiently and sustainably to compete internationally as a...

Making the Paper: Impact of Averages on Water Modelling

Making the Paper: Impact of Averages on Water Modelling

Making of the paper: Planning resilient water resources and communities: the need for a bottom up systems approach
Michael E Barry and Peter J Coombes. Impact of averages on water modelling.
This paper was awarded the GN Alexander Medal by the Engineers Australia National Committee on Water Engineering. This Medal is usually awarded every 18 months for the best paper in hydrology and/or water resources published in an Engineers Australia publication.
This article presents an overview of the processes leading to making this journal paper.

The Future of Australian Housing Design

The Future of Australian Housing Design

The Future of Australian Housing Design
Responding to population growth and climate change
Dr Peter Coombes is speaking on the economic advantages of decentralised water and stormwater management at the Rainwater Harvesting breakfast at 7:30 am on Wednesday 27 February 2019 at the Parramatta Novotel.

Tone Wheeler, Principal of Environa Architects will be discussing how architects are, and believe we should be, responding to these challenges. 

Lord Mayor Andrew Wilson will be speaking on the Parramatta Environmental Sustainability Strategy 2017

Australia city face escalating challenges of population growth, economic development, decline of ecosystems and climate change. A number of new urban housing challenges have emerged, and western Sydney is experiencing all of them.

Systems Analysis of Water and Sewage Services, Costs and Prices

Systems Analysis of Water and Sewage Services, Costs and Prices

Bottom up systems analysis of urban water resources and market mechanisms for pricing water and sewage services
Presentation Peter J Coombes, Michael Barry and Michael Smit at the HWRS 2018 conference in Melbourne at 11:00 am on Tuesday 3 December 2018. Consumers in the Greater Melbourne region pay uniform fixed and variable tariffs for utility water and sewage services. Removing fixed tariffs creates substantial reductions in water demands and improvements in water security to 2050 at a net present value of $8.6 billion. A full usage tariff regime was seen to increase water efficient behaviours and reveals improvements in household welfare.

Market Mechanisms for Better Stormwater Management

Market Mechanisms for Better Stormwater Management

Peer reviewed publication and presentation by Dr Peter Coombes at Stormwater 2018 conference. Changing the way we think about stormwater management – linking impervious areas to stormwater tariffs. “However, consider the extra motivation this would provide – if we knew we were paying for concrete  – there’d be a real economic benefit to reducing impervious areas and increasing gardens and rainwater harvesting with all the obvious benefits. This is a real shift in our thinking”

This research project builds on previous publications by the author that utilised a Systems Framework of historical big data from government agencies and utilities to identify the water and stormwater benefits of property scale water conservation measures for Australian cities. Bottom up systems analysis is used  quantify the stormwater resources and economic value of  stormwater infrastructure for Greater Melbourne.

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