There are currently different approaches and standards to providing essential services in Australia. Challenges are addressed separately by each sector and solutions are applied with varying consistency across communities.
A better solution includes defining and adopting minimum standards of access and service delivery to guide infrastructure investment decisions and service benchmarks in these places.
A focus on drinking water, sewage, waste, electricity, all weather transport access and communications services would anchor local place-based approaches to infrastructure planning.
Over time, minimum standards for these essential services could evolve to incorporate the provision of social infrastructure services that are appropriate to the scale of the community, including remoteness and demography. Refer to the Social infrastructure chapter for more details on social infrastructure provision.