Greater Western Water's leak detection program helps secure customers' water future
10 June 2026
Greater Western Water (GWW) is finding and fixing leaks earlier to help protect water supplies as population growth, drying conditions and climate change place increasing pressure on Victoria's reservoirs.
With rainfall alone no longer enough to meet future demand, using water wisely and making every drop count is a shared responsibility. Reducing leaks is one of the ways GWW is saving water across its water network.
Since 2021, GWW's large‑scale leak detection program has identified about 3,300 leaks. Together, these leaks account for about 8,170 litres of water lost every minute, which is the equivalent of an Olympic‑size swimming pool filling up every five hours.
GWW General Manager, Asset Planning and Delivery, Ian Burton said the program focuses on proactive maintenance across the entire network.
"Finding leaks early, even very small ones, helps prevent bigger problems later and reduces unnecessary water loss," Mr Burton said.
"Because most of our pipes are underground, leaks aren't always visible. That's why our teams are out in neighbourhoods every day, checking street by street to identify issues before they impact our customers," he said.
"Our detection teams will often use acoustic leak detectors to identify leaks that can't be seen from the surface. If a leak exists it will often generate sounds, like hissing or gurgles, so we'll use these acoustic leak detectors to pinpoint those sounds and proximity to the leak. When a leak is found, we schedule the repairs depending on its level of emergency and water loss," Mr Burton said.
Each year, GWW surveys about 2,000 km of water mains, which is roughly one third of its network and a distance equivalent to travelling from our Footscray office to Townsville in Queensland. All water mains are surveyed at least once every three years, prioritising suburbs with higher incident rates or those due for inspection.
GWW prioritises its repairs based on community impact, safety, environmental risk and local conditions, helping crews respond quickly and effectively.
For information on how to report a fault or leak visit prioritising urgent faults or to see if a fault has already been reported visit our outage map.
