The Park with No Grass: Greening a City with No Water
Abstract
The City of Ipswich, like all of South East Queensland, currently has limited water. Many strategies have been implemented or investigated to deal with this growing problem. Some regional strategies, either in use or suggested, are domestic water restrictions, dual pipe reticulation using recycled water, desalination and indirect potable reuse.
The South East Queensland Regional Plan, released in June 2005, projected that the population of the region will grow by 1-1.5 million people by 2026. Currently coastal areas make up approximately 90% of the population, while accounting for less than 45% of the land area. For the region to develop in a sustainable way population pressure on the coastal areas needs to be reduced and growth directed to western parts of the region, including Ipswich. To attract growth, it is important that Ipswich provide a high amenity for potential residents. As part of this, Ipswich City Council foresee the provision of large areas of additional public open space, including parks, sporting grounds and schools. It will be crucial to ensure the quality of both existing and future public open space areas which will almost certainly require some form of irrigation.
During 2005 and 2006, Ipswich City Council, Brisbane City Council and the Lockyer Water Users Forum were involved in formulating a conceptual model for recycling water under the developing Ipswich Regional Recycled Water Strategy. During this process, Ipswich City Council confirmed the potential for recycled water irrigation of high value open space within Ipswich city. However, it was first necessary to assess the viability of irrigation of open space by understanding the location, water demands, relative priorities and recycled water opportunities associated with the multitude of local, district and strategic open spaces within Ipswich.
Ipswich City Council commissioned Sinclair Knight Merz to investigate the irrigation of existing and future parks within the city.
Authors
Samantha Watt, Clem Hill, Geoff Faulkner & Col Hester