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Winterfold Water Harvesting Project

Media Statement

May 26, 2009  

Wising up to water use 

IN the face of increasing water restrictions in Western Australia and across the world, every step each person takes to conserve this precious resource is a step in the right direction.

For the past eight years, the City of Fremantle has worked to turn waste water into wanted water that’s used to help both the environment and the City’s school children.

After securing a $227,000 Federal Government Community Water Grant and $10,000 from the Department of Education, last Friday, the Winterfold Water Harvesting Project was launched by Mayor Peter Tagliaferri.

The project harvests storm-water from the City’s drainage network for re-use within the grounds of the Winterfold Primary School.

A drainage sump was removed as part of the project and this land has been returned to the school in the form of a water-wise Living Classroom garden.

The staff and students will now look after the garden and link it to their curriculum to ensure the water wise message is passed on for generations to come.

Plants will be used to tell a story or demonstrate a process such as recycling or how edible plants are harvested to be used within cooking lessons. Students will be able to pick fruit from trees in the orchard and harvest herbs and vegetables from raised garden beds.

Incorporating a practical, hands-on experience such as gardening into the primary school curriculum can only be an invaluable experience for students.

As they say: “Knowledge, after all, is like a garden . . . if it’s not cultivated it cannot be harvested.”

? For more information, contact Merryn McLean on 9432 9827 or 0405 307 141 or merrynm@fremantle.wa.gov.au

 
Stormwater sump before Project began

 
Winterfold water harvesting project engineering installation

Stormwater sump closure Ceremony