Background: In NSW, the National Parks and Wildlife Service (NPWS) manages ~890 national parks and reserves covering over 7.5 million hectares of land. This management includes visitor safety at numerous inland waterways such as rivers, lakes and waterfalls. These aquatic locations are popular recreational environments, but have recorded fatal and non-fatal drownings. Many are also geographically isolated, further impacting visitor safety. To support the NSW NPWS in enhancing its approach to drowning prevention, a partnership was formed between the University of New South Wales and the NSW NPWS to co-design an inland water safety strategy.
Description: This partnership involved significant work being conducted to understand drowning risk and visitation to inland waterways on NSW NPWS managed lands: an epidemiological review of drowning fatalities, geofencing of high risk and anecdotally high visitation locations to analyse visitation trends using mobile phone GPS data, and analysis of environmental conditions. Stakeholder workshops with NSW NPWS staff were held to determine areas of concern. Legacy tools of a dashboard and risk register to support risk assessments were developed.
Lessons learned: Work programmes have resulted from a strong partnership guided by a shared goal of reducing drowning and improving water safety amid increasing park visitation, changing visitor demographics and threats due to a changing climate. The Strategy outlines four key objectives: Use a risk management approach tailored to inland water safety; enhance inland water safety communication; apply an integrated range of responses; and partner where practical. Strategies and actions underpinning these objectives will be discussed during the presentation. Pragmatic approaches taken to strategy development ensure feasibility and utility, with legacy tools shaping decision making including provision of lifeguards at Bents Basin Reserve.
Conclusions: This project represents a positive example of aligning policies and partnerships for change, a national imperative outlined in the AWSS 2030 mid-point review.

As communities increasingly seek out natural swimming locations for swimming, boating and recreation, the need for effective safety assessment and risk management practices has become more critical than ever. Unlike traditional aquatic facilities, natural swimming environments present unique and dynamic hazards including variable water depths, submerged objects, water quality concerns, currents, weather impacts, and limited supervision or emergency response infrastructure.
This presentation explores a series of safety assessments undertaken across a range of natural swimming locations and examines how these assessments informed practical strategies to enhance public safety while maintaining community access and enjoyment. The session will outline the methodologies used to identify hazards, evaluate risk, and prioritise mitigation measures within diverse aquatic environments.
Case studies will demonstrate how assessment outcomes supported local governments, land managers, and community stakeholders in implementing safety improvements such as signage, designated swimming zones, emergency response equipment, public education initiatives, environmental modifications, and operational management controls. The presentation will also discuss the importance of balancing safety expectations with the preservation of natural environments and positive recreational experiences.
Attendees will gain insight into contemporary approaches to aquatic risk management within natural waterways, including lessons learned, stakeholder engagement strategies, and the challenges associated with managing open water environments. The presentation is particularly relevant to aquatic managers, local government representatives, emergency services, recreation planners, and safety professionals seeking practical and evidence-based approaches to reducing drowning risk and improving community safety outcomes.
By sharing real-world experiences and outcomes, this session aims to contribute to broader discussions surrounding drowning prevention and the creation of safer, more sustainable natural swimming spaces for Australian communities.

People increasingly engage with rivers and lakes for recreation, yet little is known about how these visitors connect with existing water safety pathways. This presentation explores the potential of anonymised human movement data to better understand community exposure to inland water environments and the relationship between that exposure and aquatic centre participation. It discusses how these insights could help councils and water safety organisations better target future interventions and support evidence-based drowning prevention strategies.

Water safety has traditionally been focused on prevention, rescue and restriction. AWSS2030's national imperatives finally indicate that moving towards a nation free from drowing also requires place-based programs that build community capability and water culture. The Active Rivers Coalition is a new collective action initiative that aims to improve water capability, access and culture across the 4m people of Western Sydney that will improve water safety outcomes and make Western Sydney, healthier, wealthier and safer.

The River Murray runs approximately 640 kilometres through South Australia and is central to regional life, recreation and tourism. It is also a persistent drowning risk. Between 2002 and June 2024, 34 people drowned across the Riverland and Murraylands & Lakes regions: 17 in each. In the Riverland, all fatalities were male and 95% occurred in rivers or creeks. In the Murraylands & Lakes, 88% were male, 41% were aged 65 years and over, 82% drowned in rivers or creeks and 35% were boating. These differences reinforced the need for a shared approach responsive to local risk. This work supports the Australian Water Safety Strategy 2030 National Imperative to localise water safety.

The River Murray Safety Working Group operates through two regional coalitions: Riverland and Murraylands & Lakes. Together they cover the full South Australian length of the River Murray, Lower Lakes and Coorong. The model brings together police, marine safety, emergency services, water safety organisations, education, councils, aquatic providers, industry and community representatives. Both coalitions work to four shared priorities while tailoring actions to local drowning data, communities and water use.

The experience shows that a strategy provides direction, and the coalitions keeps the work moving. Regular meetings provide a forum to share intelligence, identify gaps, coordinate activity and pursue issues no single agency can address alone. Clear roles, backbone support and priorities maintain momentum. Joint campaigns are stronger when organisations say the same thing, at the same time, while local evidence strengthens advocacy. A shared framework can connect large areas without treating different communities as though their risks are the same.

The River Murray model bridges national strategy and local action. Two locally focused coalitions operating as one group demonstrate how coordinated drowning prevention can be scaled across a large, diverse waterway while retaining local ownership and relevance.

This research explores five years of evidence gathered on inland water safety in the Loddon Mallee region of Victoria, drawing on resident, visitor and stakeholder perspectives. It identifies key needs, gaps and opportunities, and examines alignment with state and national strategies to inform more targeted, coordinated and locally relevant safety action.