A new era of water efficiency is emerging, driven by digital technologies, evolving customer engagement and sustainability strategies, challenging outdated assumptions and unlocking untapped opportunities to reduce demand and optimise investment.
Hosted by the Australian Water Association (AWA) and the International Water Association, the EFFICIENT 2025 conference will gather urban water professionals from around the globe in Melbourne from 16–18 September 2025.
The international biennial event will focus on innovative solutions to challenges in urban water management, emphasising the adoption of emerging technologies, sharing global best practices, and exploring strategies to optimise water usage and minimise waste.
AWA Water Efficiency Specialist Network Co-Chair and UTS Institute for Sustainable Futures Associate Professor Simon Fane said there will be a strong focus on digital technologies at EFFICIENT 2025, which is reflective of a growing trend in the sector.
“There’s a renaissance in water efficiency occurring at present,” he said.
“Australia was a world leader in the early 2000s, especially during the Millennium Drought. Now, it’s becoming a strong focus again and some jurisdictions are doing exciting new things.
“We’ve got world leaders in this space again. That’s partly why the world is coming to Melbourne for EFFICIENT 2025 – to see what’s happening.
"There’s a wave of smart meters and new devices being deployed, and we’re on the cusp of a major shift in how water efficiency is done and even conceptualised.”
Fane said one of the key shifts occurring within the water efficiency space is a recognition that there is still more to do, with water utilities and organisations leveraging digital tools to create even more opportunities for savings than thought possible.
"There is a legacy perception that water efficiency has already been done. But water utilities are seeing great value in water efficiency, both in terms of infrastructure savings and customer service,” he said.
“Some have done deep dives and realised that the infrastructure they avoided having to build, thanks to water efficiency, saved them significant money.
"But there was a point about 10 years ago where everyone thought we’d made all the savings possible. Now we’re realising that’s not the case.”
One of the exciting areas of work is in new ways to identify leakage, with technologies continuing to improve on each iteration. Coupling technology improvements with AI insights has the potential to create new ways of finding savings.
“Inside homes and business fixtures and fittings have also continued improving. In 2004, we were excited about three-star shower heads, and now we’ve got five-star ones. This technology has kept moving forward as well,” Fane said.
“Digital innovation is also driving change inside buildings. We’re seeing AI and machine learning really start to shape the future, with appliances and digital fixtures and it’s only going to accelerate.”
For key emerging trends, Fane said digitisation is driving a renewed interest in creating water efficiencies: “We’re seeing things like smart rainwater tanks and smart in-home greywater systems, like Hydroloop, that include AI learning systems,” he said.
“In the US, I saw small smart meter devices that homeowners can install themselves. They sit on top of the regular meter, link to an app, and provide real-time breakdowns of water use. People can access granular data about how much water they’re using and where in real time.
"In Australia, a lot of smaller utilities have already installed smart meters across their networks. And now some of the larger ones are following.
“That data is hugely valuable. There is incredible potential. These are powerful technologies, which means there are also risks. There are important discussions around privacy and cyber security that need to occur at the same time.”
There are also conversations developing around the environmental value of water efficiency, particularly around water efficiency as a climate resilience strategy.
“If you increase efficiency, you need less water during drought, so it boosts water security,” Fane said.
Are you interested in learning more about emerging trends in water efficiency in Australia and beyond? Then come to the EFFICIENT 2025 conference in Melbourne in September.
Also the AWA Water Efficiency Specialist Network is hosting a workshop on empowering residential water efficiency with new digital technologies at Ozwater’25. Register here.