On 28 September 2023, Australian Water Association (AWA) NSW Branch Inaugural Parliamentary Water Forum was held at Parliament House, Sydney with the theme Water as an Enabler; the role of water in enabling economic growth, social development, and environmental sustainability.
The Hon. Rose Jackson, Minister for Water for New South Wales, was the special guest along with AWA Board Members, AWA NSW Branch Committee Members and AWA Specialist Networks. The Minister opened the forum and discussed her experience in the water sector and how challenging it is to find the balance from a government perspective but how incredibly important and undervalued it can be.
The forum encouraged a two-way dialogue for shared learning between the NSW Parliament and water sector, bringing together industry experts and policy makers to talk about the issues that matter in water management. Some of the topics covered included the impacts of climate change on water resources, water security and quality in regional areas, purified recycled water (PRW) – experiences and perspectives of that water source and skills and training - attracting people into the sector and regional NSW.
This was followed by a comprehensive Q&A session where the water professional nutted out the big issues. It was a very informative and opened the dialogue for further important discussions in the future.