POSITION DESCRIPTION. Regional Stormwater Policy Advisor Reports to: Assessed Job Level: Manager Clearwater Job Level 6 Date: January 2010

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1 POSITION DESCRIPTION Position: Regional Stormwater Policy Advisor Reports to: Assessed Job Level: Manager Clearwater Job Level 6 Date: January 2010 ORGANISATIONAL CONTEXT Melbourne Water manages Melbourne s water supply catchments, removes and treats most of Melbourne s sewage, and manages rivers and creeks and major drainage systems throughout the Port Phillip and Westernport region. We are owned by the Victorian Government, with an independent Board of Directors responsible for governance. The responsible Minister is the Minister for Water. We are a significant business, responsible for managing $9.4 billion in water supply, sewerage and drainage assets, and we are committed to looking after these in a way that protects and improves their environmental, social and financial values. Our annual operating revenue of more than $600 million is earned from water supply and sewage treatment charges, and drainage rates. It is used to fund our operations and infrastructure projects including water, sewerage and drainage upgrades and water recycling schemes as well as works to improve and protect Melbourne s rivers, creeks, wetlands and bays. We work across several arms of the Victorian Government, including the Department of Sustainability and Environment and the Department of Treasury and Finance. EPA Victoria and the Department of Human Services regulate the environmental and public health aspects of our business, and we work closely with the Essential Services Commission, the economic regulator of Victoria s water industry. Our customers are the metropolitan retail water businesses City West Water, South East Water and Yarra Valley Water other water authorities, local councils, land developers and businesses that divert river water. Other partners include the Port Phillip and Westernport Catchment Management Authority, the Municipal Association of Victoria, Sustainability Victoria and the University of Melbourne. We work closely with research organisations to assess long-term impacts on Melbourne s water resources. Our community engagement activities rely on the support and involvement of many community stakeholders. Our people have diverse skills and expertise, and range from environmental scientists to engineers and research and technology specialists, and we place a high priority on building strong partnerships and relationships in the government, industry and community sectors. Melbourne Water is committed to providing a healthy and safe workplace for anyone who may enter our work areas and to achieving our target of zero injuries for our people and contractors; and ensuring the health and safety of people, property and environment that are potentially impacted by our operations. Melbourne Water Page 1 of 5

2 CLEARWATER CONTEXT Clearwater is a capacity building program, recognised as a key industry driver for the implementation of Sustainable Urban Water Management (SUWM) in Victoria. Using a range of innovative tools and methods, Clearwater facilitates information exchange and fosters partnerships between key organisations and stakeholders in SUWM, delivering professional, industry relevant education and training. Clearwater engages a wide range of audiences from engineers, planners, and educators through to councillors, State Government and industry executives. Clearwater fulfils the role of translating regulation and best practice into accessible training for local government and industry professionals. In addition, the program provides feedback to government policy and decision makers about the issues faced by urban water practitioners implementing policy on the ground. Clearwater is hosted by Melbourne Water and sits within the Catchments team. The Catchments team is a leader in the development of creative and innovative approaches to catchment and water resource management to improve the sustainability and liveability of the region. Our work involves: Strategic planning for Melbourne Water s catchment and waterway health programs. Managing the science and systems to support our catchment and waterway health programs. Leading internal and external stakeholder engagement to share our information and knowledge Management and delivery of stormwater quality improvement programs. Building the capacity of local government and water industry professionals to deliver best practice urban water management. Developing and implementing environmental water requirements for priority streams and groundwater systems, through the development of stream flow management plans and other water resource allocation processes. Managing the Environmental Water Reserve. Partnerships with leading research programs. PURPOSE OF THE POSITION The trend toward integration of sustainability into mainstream practices is evidenced through recent changes to the Victoria Planning Provisions, building regulations and other frameworks that direct the planning and construction of our cities and towns. Evidence of Victoria s leadership in these changes is shown in the introduction in October 2006 of Integrated Water Management requirements into Clause 56 of the Victorian Planning Provisions. Information on Clause 56 can be found at This Regional Stormwater Policy Advisor role is an important part of the capacity building and support provided by Clearwater to local governments for the transition from old water management practices to a new, sustainable approach. The Advisor will provide advice and support to regional Victorian councils and the land development industry on the implementation of Clause of the Victoria Planning Provisions, as well as new and emerging policy. The objective of the Advisor position is to generate real change and uptake in water sensitive urban design (WSUD) in regional Victoria, building on past and current capacity building activities. This role will work closely with a similar role within Melbourne Water which currently advises the metropolitan councils. Together the two positions ensure that all councils within Victoria are supported in their implementation of clause 56. The purpose of the role is to: Work closely with local government to integrate the policy implementation into their own internal policies and procedures in assessing land development applications Work with local government in improving their capacity and knowledge of stormwater pollution management and solutions, and assessment of planning applications Melbourne Water Page 2 of 5

3 Provide feedback on the transition of local government thereby informing other supporting programs and policies Liaise with industry associations and relevant agencies in creating useful supporting material and distributing existing material. Identify needs, opportunities and form projects, information tools and networks that further the uptake and implementation of Clause 56. Develop lasting relationships and networks with and between regional councils to accelerate the uptake of sustainable urban water management practices Identify opportunities and links with relevant Clearwater projects. REPORTING RELATIONSHIPS Manager Catchments Catchment strategies Environmental Flows Stormwater Quality Science Systems and Knowledge Manager Clearwater Strategic Technical Specialist Training and Marketing Coordinator Special Projects officer Regional Stormwater Policy Advisor Events Coordinator LEVEL OF RESPONSIBILITY/DIRECTION AND SUPERVISION The Regional Stormwater Policy Advisor reports to the Manager, Clearwater. The Advisor will be responsible for engaging and managing internal and external stakeholder relationships and change programs. The Advisor will face challenging situations and will apply excellent communication skills, judgement and technical knowledge to complex situations. The Advisor will work independently with limited supervision in negotiating change within other organisations. The role will also provide advice and technical support to the Clearwater team regarding local governments transition to implementing the subdivisions requirements of Clause of the Victoria Planning Provisions. Melbourne Water Page 3 of 5

4 BREADTH AND COMPLEXITY The Advisor role is mainly behavioural with some technical elements. It negotiates changes in understanding, commitment and communications within other organisations, particularly local governments. It provides some technical support in the assessment of concept plans for subdivisions and encourages the acquisition of specialist knowledge amongst councils and developers. The role will involve complex problem solving in negotiating and supporting the implementation of state government planning policy. The Advisor will be required to represent Clearwater at workshops and presentations for local government and with the broader development industry. KEY ACCOUNTABILITIES Communication and stakeholder support Regularly and effectively communicate with local governments, developers and consultants Act as a resource to assist in WSUD planning application assessments from a regulatory and technical perspective Promote consistent local government approaches to development issues and stormwater quality management across local government boundaries, particularly relating to the application of Clause 56 and pollution offsets Assist in the training of local government staff in the use of industry stormwater management resources, such as computer based design and assessment tools and technical guidelines and identify WSUD champions within regional councils Represent Clearwater on local government stormwater quality projects. Project Management Identify, drive and manage projects to meet key needs of local government and developers including management of contractors and budgets as necessary, e.g. benchmarking the implementation of Clause Monitor and report on the status of projects, and undertake post-project reviews Work closely with the Melbourne Water Advisor to implement and review the uptake of Clause 56. Technical Competency Review, respond and track transitions in local government policies and implementation of Clause 56 Review and respond to concept designs for subdivisions, and where necessary for particularly complex stormwater pollution treatment systems refer to technical experts for analysis Internal Support Build the capacity of Clearwater employees in stormwater quality policy Inform and contribute to the development of local government capacity building programs, particularly in regional areas Provide a link between research organisations, government and Clearwater activities Provide technical support for Clearwater employees. INTERPERSONAL AND OTHER FEATURES Internal Relationships The Regional Stormwater Policy Advisor must work on a daily basis with members of the Clearwater Team and Stormwater Quality Team. Melbourne Water Page 4 of 5

5 External Relationships The Advisor must work with and influence numerous external stakeholders including local government and developer consultants. The Advisor will represent Clearwater on various working groups with other authorities and agencies such as VicRoads, EPA Victoria and the Department of Sustainability and Environment. KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS AND EXPERIENCE Demonstrated capacity to build, maintain and improve relationships with a range of stakeholders Excellent interpersonal skills and the ability to communicate clearly and effectively with a wide range of people, sometimes in conflict situations Knowledge and experience in the areas of: o Capacity building and/or change management o Program evaluation o Sustainable urban water management and/or water sensitive urban design Excellent verbal and written communication skills with an ability to interpret relevant policies and communicate their intent and values to others in simple, meaningful terms Excellent project management skills and experience Demonstrated capacity to work with little supervision and ability to improve business processes in a team environment Experience in assessing design plans, development applications, planning schemes to determining whether stormwater environmental quality objectives can be achieved Understanding of o Land development and town planning, and/or o Drainage and floodplain management and/or o Drainage infrastructure planning. QUALIFICATIONS A tertiary qualification in Urban Design, Planning, Civil Engineering, Science, Resource Management or related field. LOCATION Based at 100 Wellington Parade, East Melbourne however regular trips to regional areas to work with stakeholders will be required. CONTACT PERSON For further details, please contact Emily Kaye, Manager - Clearwater on Melbourne Water Page 5 of 5