Water Stewardship Australia Limited

Water Stewardship Australia (WSA) offers a tool, a system and a governance process to engage, recognise and reward water using sites (particularly the private sector) for adopting and implementing collaborative, holistic water management plans intended to achieve four outcomes; sustainable water balance, good water quality, healthy water related ecosystems and cultural sites and good water governance. The water stewardship system is built around the AWS International Water Stewardship Standard (which draws on work started in Australia where WSA developed the world’s first water stewardship standard). It includes a verification system to establish compliance, a multi-stakeholder governance system and a brand to recognise water leadership by industry. WSA supports businesses, industries, governments, catchment agencies and NGOs seeking to engage water using sites in addressing ‘water challenges’ using the framework of the AWS Standard. WSA was a founding member of the international Alliance for Water Stewardship (AWS). It is the current chair of that organisation and operates with and on behalf of AWS in the Indo-Pacific region.

Organisational Capability

- A world leader in the use and application of the AWS International Water Stewardship for addressing water challenges in industrial and agricultural settings; - Project design, training, multi-stakeholder engagement and implementation of water stewardship projects - An ability to build consensus around shared water challenges in a catchment and gain commitment to achieving water stewardship outcomes. - Liaison with government at a national, state and local level as well as regional natural resource management bodies - Ability to engage the private sector in understanding and addressing shared water challenges (credibility with business and industry - An ability to condense technical information and data into an accessible narrative on catchment conditions and challenges.

Projects

Inghams Enterprises (Vic)
Inghams Enterprises Somerville site on the Mornington Peninsula was an early adopter of water stewardship. The company undertook a gap analysis with an early version of the water stewardship standard and sought certification following the release of the AWS International Standard (v.1). The site made a number of improvements to its operations that resulted in improved water and wastewater efficiency (including construction of an advanced water treatment plant), improved site management and improved community relationship. After an audit the site was independently assessed to conform with AWS Gold level certification. As well as improved efficiency the site has been recognised by customers and government as a water leader in Australia and has strengthened its brand and license to operate.
Western Port (Vic)
The Western Port project is a collaboration between WSA, Inghams Enterprises and the Western Port Biosphere. The project seeks to build on Inghams' commitment to water stewardship to engage other water users in the Biosphere region. The project engaged a raft of interested government agencies as participants in a reference group and financial supporter. The major funder is the Helen Macpherson Smith Trust. In its first 12 month the project exceeded its target by engaging ten neighbouring businesses (including two schools) in developing their site water stewardship plans. The project is ahead of target.
SAMI/RIT (SA)
WSA has partnered with the South Australian Murray Irrigators and Waterfind to promote a demonstration project in the Riverland. The initial pilot will be the Renmark Irrigation Trust. This project will build on experience WSA has gained working with the dairy industry and cotton industry to engage a group of agricultural enterprises that share a common set of water stewardship challenges. The RIT and its community are interested in how water stewardship can enhance the resilience of their community and enterprises. This is a similar goals to other communities in the Murray Darling Basin where WSA is working such as the Goulburn Broken and the Northern Basin
Taihu Basin (China)
WSA has been working with WWF China and Jiangsu Engineering Consulting for 18 months on addressing water problems in the Taihu Basin. Jiangsu Engineering is looking at how to engage both major and smaller enterprises in efforts to improve water quality. Water stewardship can provide recognition to industries that show leadership in addressing water challenges. WSA is supporting WWF China in building demonstration projects for the textile dyeing and printing industry in an industrial park. The Provincial Government is also interested in how water stewardship can help address non-point source pollution particularly by agricultural enterprises. WSA is working with the Jiangsu Engineering on a demonstration project for small farms and village-level implementation of water stewardship.
Small Farms
As well as working on a small farm project in the Taihu Basin WSA has been developing a small farm demonstration project in Zhejiang Province working with our regional partner Green Zhejiang. The project has advanced to the point of developing a site water stewardship plan for the demonstration site. This is now being used to engage neighbours in the village. It is hope to build from these two projects a broader international engagement in small farm application of water stewardship that will link with work underway with, for example, Hindustan Unilever Foundation in India and a potential project in PNG.
Nestle (Pakistan)
AWS is working with our Founding Partners Nestle and WWF Pakistan to implement water stewardship at Nestle's Sheikhupura site. There is now a clear plan to pursue AWS water stewardship certification at the site. AWS was able to provide a three day training program to equip local professionals with the skills to assist Nestle. This has also provided the basis for forming a Water Stewardship Network in Pakistan and led to an appearance by AWS Executive Director Adrian Sym and WWF Pakistan Freshwater Manager Ali Hasnain Sayed on a national business TV program.