Perth councils and state agencies race to purge duplicate images from public records this week

Western Australian local governments and state agencies scrambled this week to address a growing problem buried inside their digital asset libraries: thousands of duplicate images clogging records management systems, inflating storage costs, and in some cases causing planning and heritage documents to cross-reference the wrong photograph entirely.

The issue surfaced publicly after the City of Perth, whose digital asset register covers properties stretching from the CBD to Northbridge, flagged in internal communications that routine audits had uncovered significant duplication across its building permit photography archive. The City confirmed it is undertaking a systematic review but has not yet published findings or figures. The cleanup effort follows a broader directive from the State Records Office of Western Australia, which updated its digital recordkeeping standards in early 2026, placing renewed obligations on public bodies to maintain accurate, non-redundant image records.

Why does this matter now? The timing is tied directly to the Cook government's accelerating infrastructure agenda. Metronet construction documentation, AUKUS-related planning work around HMAS Stirling at Garden Island, and the surge in development applications driven by immigration-fuelled housing demand have all flooded agency image databases with new material since 2023. When duplicate images exist in those records, heritage assessments and development approvals can be delayed or, worse, linked to photographs of the wrong site entirely.

Where the problem is showing up across Perth

Two organisations are at the centre of this week's activity. The Western Australian Planning Commission, headquartered on Optus Stadium Drive in East Perth, manages site photography for thousands of active development proposals across the metropolitan region. Staff there have been working through a deduplification process using software tools to flag near-identical image files, a job that began in earnest in the first week of July after the financial year rollover freed up IT resources previously tied to budget-period reporting.

Separately, the City of Fremantle confirmed it is reviewing its heritage photography archive, which covers more than 500 properties on the State Heritage Register within the port city. The Fremantle review is focused specifically on images attached to the Municipal Heritage Inventory, where a duplicate or mislabelled photograph attached to a place record can create legal complications during development assessments. Fremantle's heritage team has been working alongside staff from the Department of Planning, Lands and Heritage to standardise file-naming conventions before the end of the July school holidays, when a fresh wave of development applications is typically lodged.

The State Records Office's updated General Disposal Authority for Local Government Records, which took effect on 1 January 2026, requires councils to retain photographic records that document built heritage for a minimum of 50 years. That obligation makes accuracy essential: a duplicate filed under the wrong address doesn't just waste server space, it becomes a permanent liability in the public record.

Storage costs and the practical stakes

Government cloud storage is not free. Western Australian public bodies collectively spent tens of millions of dollars on digital storage infrastructure in the 2025–26 financial year, though the specific figure for image archives has not been published. Industry benchmarks suggest that large local governments managing active development portfolios can accumulate image libraries exceeding 10 terabytes within three to five years of shifting to digital-first permitting. Duplicate files can account for 20 to 30 percent of that volume, according to digital records management literature, though WA-specific audited figures are not yet publicly available.

For residents and property developers, the practical consequence is straightforward: a heritage or planning decision delayed by a records query can add weeks to an approval timeline. In the current Perth market, where construction timelines are already stretched and housing demand remains acute, those delays carry real dollar costs.

What happens next depends on how quickly agencies complete their audits. The State Records Office has indicated it will publish updated guidance for local governments on image deduplication workflows later in July. The City of Perth's review is expected to conclude before the end of the month, with any findings likely reported to its Audit and Risk Committee. Developers and heritage consultants working on projects in the inner suburbs — particularly around Highgate, Mount Lawley, and the West End of Fremantle — would be well advised to confirm with the relevant council that site photography attached to their application is current and correctly filed before lodgement.