As Wollongong City Council implements its newly adopted Development Control Plan (DCP) policies, the need for consistent, reliable, and efficient stormwater management modelling has become increasingly important.
With a diverse landscape encompassing coastal environments, urban catchments, and sensitive receiving waters, the council requires robust processes that support sound decision-making while remaining practical for day-to-day development assessment.
Under the updated planning framework, stormwater management modelling is essential for demonstrating compliance with Council-specific parameters and protecting the local environment.
At the same time, traditional workflows can create challenges, including inconsistent modelling approaches, fragmented data management, and increased risk of errors during assessments.
These challenges affect both council staff and applicants, particularly as development activity grows across the LGA, highlighting the need for a more streamlined, reliable approach.
To address these challenges, Wollongong City Council has adopted eWater MUSIC™-Link, which helps them to streamline the development and assessment of MUSIC models by incorporating the Council’s specific modelling parameters.
MUSIC-Link is part of a suite of tools offered under eWater MUSIC, offering a tailored profile within the software specific to each subscribing local government area’s guidelines, water-sensitive urban design (WSUD) and water quality targets. Learn more.
The decision by Wollongong City Council reflects a broader commitment to improving assessment efficiency, strengthening data governance, and ensuring modelling outcomes appropriately reflect local conditions.
As one Wollongong City Council Environmental Strategy Officer said, “Wollongong City Council has adopted MUSIC-link to streamline the development and assessment of stormwater modelling, enhancing both efficiency and reliability.”
“This strategic decision enables tailored solutions that reflect the unique climate and diverse catchment characteristics of our LGA, mitigates the risk of data mismanagement, and represents a significant step forward in safeguarding sensitive environments with greater confidence and clarity.”
By adopting MUSIC-Link, Wollongong City Council is supporting a more consistent and transparent modelling process aligned with its planning controls.
The approach helps reduce uncertainty in submissions, improves confidence in assessment outcomes, and supports solutions that are responsive to Wollongong’s varied catchments and environmental priorities.
As councils across Australia continue to respond to increasing regulatory complexity and environmental pressures, Wollongong City Council’s adoption of MUSIC-Link demonstrates how digital tools can support policy implementation, improve assessment workflows, and strengthen environmental outcomes.
Photo Credits: Wollongong City Council
Need more information:
- Head to Wollongong City Council’s website to learn more about their urban water management plan.
- Interested to learn about eWater MUSIC? eWater MUSIC – eWater
- Want to participate in our 2026 training program? https://ewater.org.au/training
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