ISF was commissioned to conduct an evaluation of the environmental and economic impact of the Water Efficiency Labelling and Standards (WELS) scheme since its commencement in July 2006 and projected 20 years to the end of 2036-37. The evaluation built on the approach and methodology of a previous ISF evaluation of the scheme’s environmental impact in terms of household water consumption, energy use and greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions.
The project included a series of analytical steps: analysis of data on product registrations in the WELS scheme database, review and analysis of existing data sources, product stocks and sales, development of new data sources via interviews and data collation and finally modelling of water consumption and associated energy use, GHG emissions, costs and benefits due to the WELS scheme (broken down by state/territory).
As part of the project ISF developed a bespoke water savings calculator spreadsheet model that estimated the impact of WELS based on end-use modelling. The model had an automated capacity to draw data from various sources into the model. Individual model were built for each State and results were reported for Australia as a whole and for each state. This study has shown the WELS scheme in Australia to be an important component of urban water management, with demand reductions that are likely to be delaying supply augmentations in multiple regions.
Researchers
-
Associate Professor and Research Director -
Research Consultant -
Anna Schlunke
Year
- 2018
Location
- Australia
Client
- Australian Department of Agriculture and Water Resources (DAWR)
