The Murray Darling Basin is in crisis - dry river beds, dead fish, dying local communities, accusations of corruption and water theft, conflict between stakeholders. The basic problem - not enough water. This presentation proposes a partial solution through the provision of a critical missing component - accurate real time data about what's happening throughout the Basin.

1. MaketheMurrayDarlingBasinTransparent
toBenefitAllParties
Aplantohelpsolvethe
Murray-DarlingCrisis
August2019

2. Murray-DarlingBasin
 Area 1.1 million square km
 Australia’s food bowl - $15 billion in gross
agricultural products - 39% of Australia's total
 Multiple stakeholders; farmers & irrigators,
the federal government, rural communities,
4 states, scientists, environmentalists,
regulatory authorities and many more
 Lack of trust between stakeholders
 Insufficient scientific, environmental &
compliance data
 Difficult to make informed decisions

3. Highprofileproblems
 Fish kills
 Drying river beds
 Water restrictions
 Conflict between stakeholders
 Irrigators vs environmentalists
 State vs State
 Big irrigators vs small
 Upstream vs downstream
 Community outrage
 Perceived and actual water theft

4. Multipleinquiries
 2016 - Murray-Darling Northern Basin Review
 2017 - Murray-Darling Basin Water Compliance Review
 2017 - Independent Investigation into NSW Water Management & Compliance
 2018 - Independent Audit of Queensland Non-Urban Water Measurement & Compliance
 2018 - Murray-Darling Basin Compliance Compact
 2019 - Murray-Darling Basin Royal Commission (SA)
 2019 - Independent Assessment of the 2018-2019 Fish Deaths in the Lower Darling

5. Basin governments should significantly increase investment in research and development to address knowledge gaps.
Murray-DarlingNorthernBasinReview
All models have limitations which carry an inherent uncertainty.
IndependentInvestigationintoNSWWaterManagement&Compliance
More assertive adoption & implementation of new monitoring and compliance technologies such expanded
use remote meter reading and telemetry.
IndependentAuditofQueenslandNon-UrbanWaterMeasurement&Compliance
The use of telemetry and remote read technology needs to be pursued.
Murray-DarlingBasinComplianceCompact
Telemetry should be used to improve timeliness & efficiency of capturing & reporting water take data for compliance.
Murray-DarlingBasinRoyalCommission(SA)
MDBA’s reliance upon modelling to monitor compliance on the basis that it has been used in the past is unsatisfactory.
IndependentAssessmentofthe2018-2019FishDeathsintheLowerDarling
Murray-DarlingBasinWaterCompliancereview
Telemetry is a powerful & efficient way to monitor compliance. Increased use of telemetry is warranted in the Basin.

6. Generalagreement
 Basing decisions on modelling is unsatisfactory
 There is insufficient up to date & real time data for
 Compliance
 The environment
 The Basin & catchment overall
 Scientific data
 Irrigators, farmers & local communities
 Meters, sensors & telemetry are a critical part of the solution

7. IndependentAuditofQueenslandNon-UrbanWaterMeasurement&Compliance
“Meters were fitted with telemetry devices. A company called Taggle was
keen to invest and support trials in the area. The infrastructure used radio
devices on each meter relaying information to a receiver then via 3G to
Taggle before being sent on to DNRME in Toowoomba.”
“It will be important that the requirement (for telemetry) is expressed
carefully in terms of metering and compliance and enforcement outcomes
desired, rather than making assumptions about the best technologies to
achieve those outcomes.”
IndependentinvestigationintoNSWWaterManagement&Compliance

8. Thesolution
Transmitting data in near real time from water meters and other sensors (flow, depth,
temperature, water quality, catchment rainfall, salinity, oxygen levels, etc.) using
telemetry would:
 Significantly improve compliance
 Provide invaluable scientific data
 Provide critical environmental information
 Provide data for irrigators & farmers to improve water efficiency & save money
 Make the Murray Darling Basin transparent to all stakeholders
 Have benefits for all stakeholders
Sowhyhasn’t itbeenacted upon yet?

9. Thebig(perceived)obstacle
big$Murray-Darling Basin Water Compliance review – 2017
“It is understood that adding a telemetry capacity would cost $3,000, with monthly
operating costs of $10-20 if mobile coverage is available & $50 to $100 in remote sites
served by satellite coverage.“
Thishasbecomeacceptedwisdom-
butitisINCORRECT-byafactorof10ormore

10. Thetruecost
much smaller $
Accepted wisdom Actual Taggle cost
Price per meter/sensor $3,000 $200
Monthly transmission fee $10 to $100 $1.00
Thetotalinvestmenttomonitoreveryoneofthe14,400outtakesintheMDB
andprovideanetworkthatcouldhelpirrigators&researcherswouldbe
lessthan$20million...
...withnoneedfor3/4GorSatellitecommunications-sodramaticallycheapertransmissioncosts
ANDmuchmorereliabletransmission

11. Goodmanagementreliesonaccuratedata
Real time or near real time measurement:
 Offtakes
 Flow, depth
 Water quality, salinity , oxygen levels
 Water temperature
 Catchment rainfall, weather
 Soil moisture, furrow irrigation levels
 Anything else with a sensor
For compliance, scientific & environmental monitoring

12. Thesolution
Taggle offers a complete proven solution
 Economical and cost-effective
 Many existing customers in Murray-Darling Basin
 Enables use of multiple sensors
 100% Australian designed & developed
 Helps ALL stakeholders
 Farmers & irrigators
 Compliance authorities
 The environment
 The States
 Councils, utilities
 Industry
 Scientists & researchers
 Has been canvassed in the reports

13. TagglecustomersinBasin
 Bathurst Council
 Edward River Council
 Federation Council
 Goldenfields Council
 Gunnedah Shire Council
 Mid Western Regional Council
 Moree Plains Council
 Narrabri Shire Council
 SA Water
 GWM Water
 Southern Rural Water
Totalof53,583SmartMetersintheMDB-32,000
morebeingrolledout in2019

14. Proventechnology
 34+ Australian utilities/councils
 Farmers, irrigators, researchers,
businesses, high rise buildings
 1.4 billion sensor readings in 2018,
 > 1 billion sensor readings Jan–July 2019
 60 GL of water measured in 2018
 6 GL of leaks detected in 2018
 160,000 live devices installed
 60,000 more devices being rolled out
 Partnered with Honeywell
 Being exported internationally

15. AutomatedMeterReading

16. RainGauges
SoilMoisture&EndFurrow
AirQuality
StormWater
Pressuresensors
Level Sensors
WaterQuality
WeatherStations
Othersensorsinclude

17. RecentlyfeaturedonSBS
https://www.sbs.com.au/news/could-intelligent-sensors-and-smart-devices-in-pipes-fix-australia-s-water-crisis
“COULD INTELLIGENT SENSORS &
SMART DEVICES IN PIPES FIX
AUSTRALIA‘S WATER CRISIS?"
Feature Article

18. Optionsinclude
Telemetry-enabled:
 Smart Water Meters
 Air quality sensors
 Weather stations & rain gauges
 Water quality sensors
 H2S sensors, Oxygen levels
 Flow sensors, level sensors
 Pressure sensors
 Overflow sensors
 Soil moisture sensors
 Any sensor with standard interface
 MiWater analytic & display
software

19. MaketheMurray-Darlingtransparent–theplan
 Install meters with telemetry on all outtakes
 Compliance, trust, low cost for irrigators
 Monitor environmental conditions in real time
 Flow, depth
 Rainfall, weather
 Water quality, oxygen levels, temperature, etc.
 Assist farmers & irrigators with data on
 Soil moisture sensors, end furrow sensors
 Remote trough sensors
 Use less water, reduce run-off, save money
 Measure anything that can be measure by a sensor – in real time
 Provide real time scientific data
 Make better, more informed decisions
Telemetry
for
compliance
Telemetry
for the
environment
Telemetry
for irrigators
Telemetry
for science

20. MaketheMurray-Darlingtransparent–thebenefits
 Help ALL stakeholders
 Increase transparency
 Reduce conflict
 Help farmers, irrigators & rural communities
 Help the environment
 Low risk – proven technology
 Low investment – less than 10% of alternative approaches
 Australian technology – 100% Australian designed & developed
 Export potential – strong partnership with Honeywell
 Regional employment opportunities

21. Irrigators&farmers-benefits
 Much cheaper solution than other proposed
compliance methods
 No reliance on 3G or Satellites
 Easier to install and support
 Affordable telemetry provides real-time information:
• Manage water better
• Reduce water use
• Reduce run-off
• Use less fertiliser
• Save money through lower water costs
• Save money through cheaper compliance costs
• Monitor cattle, identify leaks, measure rainfall, soil moisture, end furrow water levels, bore depth,
etc. – anything that can be measured with a sensor

22. Regulators-benefits
 Roll out compliance more quickly and rapidly
 Reduce costs of compliance
 Eliminate push-back from irrigators
 Gather near real time data – hourly transmission
 Meet all recommendations of Matthews report
 All pipe sizes
 All irrigators, small & large
 Focus on results, not a specific technology
 Receive data in standard format
 Obtain additional information on MDB

23. Environmentalbenefits
 Reduce run-off
 Conserve water
 Identify potential problems immediately
 Understand environmental issues in
basin much better
 Measure rainfall, water quality,
flow, etc. to better manage basin
 Better quality, real time data to support
proposals

24. Scientificresearchbenefits
Allows scientists & researchers to monitor anything that
can be measured with a sensor – in near real time
 Weather, catchment rainfall
 Bore water, CSG water
 Air quality, water quality, salinity, flow
depth, temperature, etc.
Scientists can use actual real time data rather than
relying on theoretical models

25. Taggletelemetry–howitworks
1 - Meter (or other sensor) fitted with Taggle transmitter
 10-15 year battery life
 Works with any AS4747 water meter – mechanical, ultrasonic & magflow
 Works with any sensor that uses standard protocols, e.g. Temperature, flow,
pressure, water quality, salinity, depth, soil moisture, overflow, air quality, rain
gauges, weather stations, electricity, etc.
 Standard protocols supported include Modbus, RS485, RS232, 4-20 mA
 Other non-standard protocols can be added with a few days work
 Different transmitters for different situations, e.g.
* Higher power to transmit from under steel plates, longer distances, etc
* Retrofit to existing meter types

26. Taggletelemetry–howitworks
2 - Transmitter sends data to Taggle receiver
 Data transmitted hourly but can be any other interval
 Data sent is current reading plus two previous readings. Data is cumulative
(i.e. reflects the true reading at the time it’s transmitted)
 Data is held at receiver for several months – can be expanded to
five years if required
 If transmission not received remedial action
can be taken within days
 Data is encrypted for security
 Range, transmitter to receiver – up to 40 km in rural areas
 Coverage – up to 5,000+ sq km per receiver
 Capacity – up to 40,000 sensors per receiver

27. Taggletelemetry–howitworks
3 - Taggle receiver sends data to client software via cloud
 Encrypted data is sent to Taggle servers via 3G
 Data then sent via FTPS or SFTP to client’s software
platform or Taggle’s own MiWater software
 Data can be sent as .CSV file or other standard file type
 Encrypted data can be retained on
Taggle’s servers or deleted as required

28. 1. Sensors for data acquisition
2. Taggle modules (“Tags”)
3. LPWAN Base Stations
4. The IoT cloud
5. IoT Platform
6. Operational & Analytic software
7. Customer portal & apps
Taggletelemetry–howitworks

29. June 2019

30. TagglecustomersMarch2019
NSW
 Armidale Local Council
 Ballina Shire Council
 Bathurst Regional Council
 Edward River Council
 Eurobodalla Shire Council
 Federation Council
 Goldenfields Water
 Gunnedah Shire Council
 Lithgow City Council
 Mid-Western Regional Council
 Moree Plains Shire Council
 Narrabri Shire Council
 Narrendera Shire Council
 Port Macquarie Hastings Council
 Sydney Water
ACT/National
 Canberra Airport
 Department of Defence

31. June 2019
TagglecustomersMarch2019
Northern Territory
 NT Power & Water
South Australia
 SA Water
Victoria
 Barwon Water
 City West Water
 GWM Water
 Southern Rural Water
 Yarra Valley Water
Queensland
 Banana Shire Council
 Bundaberg Regional Council
 Cassowary Coast Shire Council
 Charters Towers Regional Council
 Farmacist (Irrigation)
 Fraser Coast Council
 Isaac Regional Council
 Mackay Regional Council
 Mareeba Shire Council
 Torres Shire Council
 Townsville Shire Council
 UnityWater
 Whitsunday Regional Council

32. Tagglecustomerawardsinclude
 Townsville City Council – Short listed for Smart City of the Year 2019 – Metropolitan
 Mid Western Regional Council – shortlisted for IDC Smart Cities Award 2019
 SA Water – Winner, 2018 Australian Digital Utility of the Year
 SA Water - Bronze prize, International Water Association's Project Innovation Awards
 SA Water – Winner, Best Industrial IoT Project, Australian IoT Awards 2019
 Narrabri Regional Council – Winner, 2018 Bluett Award for most progressive council in NSW,
Urban & Rural Sectors
 Mackay Regional Council – Winner, 2018 AWA Program Innovation Award - < 250,000 users
 Mackay Regional Council – Winner, National Award for Excellence, 2016 Local Govt Awards
 Mackay Regional Council – Winner, 2016 International Water Association Awards, Digital
Innovation in Local Government

33. TaggleContactDetails
Managing Director: John Quinn
John.Quinn@taggle.com.au
Taggle Systems Pty Ltd
Level 1, 101 Sussex St,
Sydney NSW 2000
+61 2 8999 1919
www.taggle.com.au