SPECIAL REPORT
Australia after Corona:
Investing in water infrastructure is an investment in our long-term future by Warwick Lorenz, Managing Director, Australian Pump Industries The story is contributed by Warwick Lorenz, Managing Director of Australian Pump Industries. Lorenz is a veteran of the water industry having been drafted out of an advertising and journalist’s career at what was the old Tutt Bryant Group into managing its water pump manufacturing division, Pacific Pump. He has lived through the destruction of Australia’s industrial manufacturing sector, experienced the challenges of the “recession we had to have” and tasted the temporary delights of the Australian mining boom. He has worked with farmers, miners, the construction industry, defence, marine and food processing. Warwick is passionate about Australian manufacturing, agriculture and industry and is a long-time advocate for major water reform. We Australians have a right to feel confident about a speedy recovery from the Coronavirus. It’s not just a health issue but to many Australians, a devastating economic one as well! The fact that our population is only 25 million people in a huge island continent is a blessing we rarely appreciate. That low population compared to economic wealth, enables us to isolate, co-operate and communicate with one another in a totally positive way, given the right leadership. One of the major issues we’ve seen to come out of this, is what appears to be normally squabbling leaders showing a remarkable co-operation under Scott Morrison’s leadership. The fact that the PM and parliament were able to swiftly move to incorporate State Premiers of both political persuasions into a Federal Cabinet - working together in a combined effort to defeat the virus - is inspiring and should be a lesson to all of us. It shows that our leaders can rise to the occasion in extreme circumstances. 38
Waste + Water Management Australia | June/July 2020
