Water resilience in Western Australia since European Colonisation

When European Settlers arrived in Western Australia they brought
their own conceptions of water security and agriculture with
them. Initially the land around what is now Perth was presented
as a green and pleasant land. But the reality was very different.


The water supply of south Western Australia fluctuates throughout
the year and as a result, ground water resources and their demand
rise and fall in response to prevailing patterns of rainfall. The
flow of rivers varies according to the amount of rain the
Westerlies bring to the region, leading past engineers to
classify the region around Perth as a ‘hydraulically difficult
country’. This tough reality complicates agricultural production
in the region and turns Perth's suburban green spaces and gardens
into a political hot potato. Add climate change into this already
fraught mix, and it is expected that the current drying trend
will contribute to further desiccate this already dry land. The
title of a recent book about the water history of Western
Australia, “Running out?”, seems to refer to this uncertain
future.


However, “Running out?” authored by Historian Ruth Morgan of
Monash University in Melbourne, is by no means a story of doom
and gloom. It argues that Western Australians have a strong sense
of their vulnerability to water scarcity and climate variability
and this has long fueled environmental anxieties. To understand
these real or perceived perceptions of water vulnerability,
Morgan’s book places those anxieties in their ever changing
historical contexts. This edition of the podcast explores the
history of these water anxieties with Ruth Morgan and asks the
question - what lessons can be learned from the water history of
Western Australia.


Music credits


“River” by Jeris


“Nightmare (Australian Mix) - Cardboard Love” by DJStupid


“Out in the rain” by offlinebouncer


All tracks available from ccMixter