GLOBAL GOAL 6 CLEAN WATER AND SANITATION
Richard came in to speak to the boys about water in Perth. First he spoke about his career as a water engineer and his early days with Clean Up Australia and how much he enjoyed those early days on the job. He then spoke to the boys about rain patterns in Australia and how most rainfall in the North of WA is in summer whereas the south it is in winter. He talked to the boys about where water in Perth comes from, dams and ground water. Richard discussed the development of important dams in WA, e.g. Mundaring Weir and Serpentine. The location in the hills was important for the collection of rain water, the surrounding forest preventing drainage and pollution, and, to be away from main populations and developments. By the 1980s the dams contained half as much water and by the 2000s, 25% less water - the change as a result of changing climate. Less rainfall and hotter, drier weather results in droughts. Not only is there less clean water available, there are more people requiring water. He spoke about the impact of sewerage water being treated and being unusable because of chemicals. Ocean water from Matilda Bay to Geraldton has a health warning. The chemicals in the water create algal blooms and weeds in the water. Fishing creates problems in waterways from the nets and also food litter. The future for water in Perth will be a requirement for desalination plants.
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AuthorsY5 students at Scotch College, Perth Archives
November 2020
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Photo used under Creative Commons from joshtasman