Across the first half of 2023, The Plug-in undertook research to understand the water usage and needs of older South Australians, with a particular focus on the experiences of those living in regional areas. This research was funded by the South Australian Government, Department of Environment and Water, through the Consumer Advocacy and Research Fund.
After undertaking background scoping for the project through desk research and stakeholder interviews, The Plug-in engaged with older South Australians through interviews and a state-wide survey to hear about how they typically use water, how they access multiple water sources, and what they think about the quality of their water. There were 20 interview participants and 400 survey respondents.
The results showed that while many older South Australians have little to no issues with accessing clean water, there were certain regional areas where accessing water of an adequate quality or supply was a challenge. Overall, regional respondents had lower ratings for water quality measures compared their metropolitan counterparts.
* Significantly different between Adelaide and Regional SA at 95% CI
This impacted participants physically, mentally and financially, dependent on the specific issues they faced. Many were reliant on rainwater as the primary supply for their household, which brought with it the costs of installing and maintaining infrastructure to support this. In some regional areas, we were told of the need to replace household appliances and infrastructure due to mineral build up from local water supplies, including groundwater and river water. Others expressed water quality influencing their willingness to drink, bathe/shower and use it for plants and animals.
We found that the majority of older South Australians were unaware of their consumer rights and protections when it comes to water – only 15% of metropolitan and 13% of regional participants said that they were aware.
Thank you to everyone who shared their valuable insights. You can read the full report of results here: https://cdn.environment.sa.gov.au/environment/docs/COTA-Understanding-Water-Use-and-Needs-of-Older-People-in.pdf
Learn more about your water rights as a consumer: https://www.escosa.sa.gov.au/consumers/water
The findings from this research help COTA SA to build on an evidence base of the needs and experiences of older people living in regional South Australia, and the unique challenges they face in the supply and quality of water. It is our aim that these findings will be used to inform the development of regional water service delivery strategies and water and environmental policies. Further, it can be used by consumer bodies to advocate and deliver programs for older South Australians, an important and growing population group in our regional areas.
