Water security: enabling South Australia's next chapter of growth

As generations of South Australians have learned at school, we live in the driest state on the driest inhabited continent on Earth. Water security has always been fundamental to the state’s prosperity and growth. 

While the challenge is not new, the scale and context are changing. South Australia is entering a defining decade, with population growth, the State Government’s ambitious housing agenda and investments in renewable energy, critical minerals and defence driving new infrastructure needs. 

A recent CEDA roundtable held at GHD’s Adelaide office brought together leaders from government, industry, infrastructure and investment to explore the opportunities and challenges shaping South Australia's future. One message came through clearly: water can no longer be treated simply as infrastructure that responds to growth. It needs to help enable it. 

The question is whether South Australia can position water infrastructure ahead of demand and gain social licence, so growth is enabled rather than constrained.

Water as an economic enabler

Emerging industrial sectors such as green hydrogen, critical minerals processing and data centres could significantly reshape future demand. At the same time, population growth is placing greater pressure on existing infrastructure. These demands are becoming increasingly interconnected.
 
 For businesses considering major investments, certainty of water supply is increasingly part of the investment equation, not simply a utility consideration. If supply cannot be secured with confidence, projects risk delays, resigns, or redirection elsewhere. At the same time, communities need confidence that growth will not come at the expense of liveability or environmental outcomes. Without that certainty, development can be delayed, productivity constrained and costs can rise.

This creates the challenge for our state: how do we provide enough certainty to support investment and growth when the scale, location and timing of future demand cannot be precisely predicted? 

Planning for multiple futures

South Australia has a strong foundation to build on, with previous investment strengthening water resilience and reducing reliance on rainfall. But future demand will be shaped by factors that are difficult to predict, from population growth and emerging industries to the evolving impacts of climate change.

Major water infrastructure also takes time to plan and deliver. Waiting until demand has fully materialised can be too late, while early commitments carry their own risk. That makes optionality all the more valuable. Adaptive planning can preserve options and allow investment decisions to respond as demand becomes clearer. Long-term resilience will depend on integrating multiple sources, including desalination, recycled water, groundwater and stormwater, alongside water efficiency and demand management.

The Northern Water Project is one example of this thinking, exploring a climate-resilient water supply that could support mineral exploration and adjacent industries while contributing to decarbonisation, sustainability and long-term economic prosperity in northern South Australia.

The task isn’t to predict one version of the future perfectly. It is to make decisions now that keep enough options open to respond to whatever that future brings. 

Building a water-secure future for all South Australians

Infrastructure and flexibility alone, however, will not determine success. Efficiency, reuse and demand management will remain important alongside new supply, as will strong governance, early engagement and transparent decision-making.

Shared responsibility also extends to how water is used. We all have a role in improving efficiency, reducing avoidable consumption and using the right water for the right purpose. Together, these actions can help preserve high-quality drinking water for the uses that need it most.

It also means considering not only how much water is available, but how equitably it can be accessed. Water security must support regional and remote communities alongside metropolitan areas and major industries. Keeping equity in view as we plan for the future will be important in ensuring the benefits of water security are shared across the state.

South Australia has a strong history of innovation in water management. The opportunity now is to build on that foundation together: preserving options, investing at the right time, and making communal decisions that ensure water infrastructure enables our ambitions rather than becoming the constraint that determines where growth can occur.