As of today ARID (Australian Rainwater Industry Development group) has released their 2008 rainwater harvest guide available online and in selected newsagencies around Australia. The rainwater harvesting guide is designed to help make rainwater harvesting less mysterious to the consumer with practical advice and tips on rain water products. The guide also contains valuable information on government rebates and regulations for new homes. An overview of the contents of the guide includes the following:

• How to maximise the potential of a rainwater tank
• Urban Dams
• How much rainwater will you collect
• Water tanks and new homes
• Rainwater pumps
• Rebates and policy
• Water safety and quality
• Water Tank maintenance

Visit the ARID website to download your copy of the Rainwater Saver Guide.

Flo-to-Go is an ingenious system for getting gray water from your shower to your garden without the need to store it in a greywater tank. Flo-to-Go utilises shower water on the garden or lawn and is compact, discrete, simple & low maintenance.

FLO-to-GO is a compact and automatic fluid transfer system that helps create an economical grey-water re-use system that meets most customer's requirements. Flo to GO meets current water restriction regulations and follows government guidelines, while keeping the product extremely competitive price.

FLO-to-GO is a simple household diversion system which is not subject to EPA Approval, however local water authority or council approval may be required. Approvals can be arranged by approved installer.

Check out the FLO-to-GO grey water system website.

These DIY Handytanks not only look cool, but they're cheap too. The Handytank is a 1000 litre rain-water storage tank made out of a marine grade PVC bladder and supported by a clip together tubular zinc plated steel frame. As you can imagine, these tanks are much easier to transport unassembled and a quick to erect.

Strangely, water saving innovation seems to be few and far between these days. This blog aims to inform you of any new and exciting water saving products, but it seems to be getting harder and harder to find new and interesting material.

The AQUS water saver is one of those great ideas I long to discover. This innovative device captures the greywater from your hand basin and pumps it back into the toilet cistern so the water can be re-used to flush the toilet. Brilliant!

As far as I'm aware, this device is only available in the states at the moment. But check out the AQUS website for details.

For those of you in the market for a new rainwater tank, CHOICE have a comprehensive guide to buying a water tank on their website.� The guide covers the following topics:

• Benefits
• Before you Start
• Outdoor/Indoor/Drinking
• Tank Facts
• Costs and Extras
• Water saving tips
• Case Studies

View the CHOICE guide to buying a rainwater tank.

Ewater systems has a great new oil and grease remove system for commercial kitchens. The Grease Guardian will remove grease and solids from water before it enters the sewage system, thus reducing the amount of grease and all entering into the sewage system. The Grease Guardian will help commercial kitchens reduce sewage blockages and improve the efficiency of wastewater treatment processes.

The Brisbane Times has reported that the Brisbane City Council has suffered a significant blow out in their budget for rainwater tank rebates.
So far rainwater tank rebates have cost Brisbane City Council in excess of $12.6 million, more than they has budgeted for in 2007-08.

I'm sure the council isn't impressed with this, but I sure am. Goes to show how proactive people are being when it comes to saving water in their homes.

At this stage of the game it looks like Kevin Rudd will be elected as the new Prime Minister of Australia. I hope he keeps his promises in relation to the environment and I hope he fulfills the water saving reforms and water saving product rebate schemes promised.

It's been encouraging to see that the Greens have achieved some decent numbers this election, lets hope that the new labor government takes heed of the voting trend and pays more attention to climate change than the previous government.

Here are some of Labor's Water crisis policies published during the election campaign:

• Invest $1 billion in urban desalination, water recycling and stormwater capture projects that are consistent with environmental best practice and are carbon neutral.
• Invest $250 million modernising and repairing existing water systems and infrastructure in our towns and cities.
• Establish a national target of recycling 30 per cent of wastewater by 2015.
• Invest $250 million in direct rebates for rainwater tanks and grey water systems in households.
• Help households with low interest green loans of $10,000 so they can more easily install water and energy efficient products, such as rainwater tanks and solar hot water.
• Work with industry, farmers and community groups to return water to rivers and conserve water in towns and cities.
• Bring forward $400 million in spending under the National Plan for Water Security to fast-track improvements in water efficiency, significantly invest in key water infrastructure projects and address over-allocation.

Have you mulched your garden recently? Mulching your garden with your own compost or with mulch purchased from your local nursery or garden supplier helps prevent evaporation and improves the quality of your soil.

There are three kinds of mulch that can can be used effectively on the garden to save water:

Coarse Mulch - such as pebbles, bark, gravel and recycled bricks.

Medium Mulch - wood chips and wood chips

Fine Mulch - saw dust, straw, cow manure and compost.

For more details, check out Save Water - Mulch and compost.

The Age reports that Level 6 water restrictions have been announced by the Queensland state government on Monday the 12th November. See my previous post about Stage 6 Water restrictions and what they mean.