Unwise water wastage is the enemy of the state of Victoria, with a new billing scheme to punish those who don’t keep a cap on water use.

A new strategy launched by Water Minister Peter Walsh gives users a range of pricing options to suit their circumstances.

The water strategy consultation paper states that it “will investigate changing the structure of water bills, to create stronger incentives to manage water efficiently'', early reports say that may be through a higher variable consumption component of bills.

With the average Melbourne household paying 55 per cent of their bill for variable charges and 45 per cent on fixed service delivery fees, the new initiative may see the variable component take up a large portion. It goes beyond just household bills though, with suggestions to improve the implementation of stormwater-management requirements for residential subdivisions.

The launch of the draft strategy follows just a week behind the Essential Services Commission announcing that the water bills for Melbourne households would rise by as much as $220 this financial year, blamed largely on the construction of a new desalination plant.