Bold new water plan for Ballarat

Updated November 5 2012 - 12:44pm, first published November 18 2005 - 12:49pm

THE STATE Government and Central Highlands Water have unveiled a bold multi-million dollar lifeline for Ballarat's future water supply.
Water Minister John Thwaites yesterday launched the Ballarat Regional Action Plan which is designed to save drinking water by using more recycled water.
The blueprint features 54 actions including:
A $20 million to $30 million upgrade of the Ballarat North Wastewater Treatment Plant to supply water for manufacturing and industry and provide flows to stressed rivers and possibly into Lake Wendouree;
Investigating an alternative water supply for Geelong in a bid to transfer 7000 megalitres of Barwon Water's allocation stored in Lal Lal Reservoir to Central Highlands Water to supply Ballarat;
A $2 million pipeline project to transfer water from Cosgrave Reservoir to White Swan Reservoir, providing an extra 450 megalitres a year to the Ballarat and district supply system;
Introducing permanent water saving rules to Ballarat from December 1;
Construction of a $4.8 million recycling project at Maryborough to provide water for agriculture and recreational facilities;
A $5.2 million upgrade of the Ballarat South Wastewater Treatment Plant, including construction of de-watering and disinfection facilities;
$2.5 million project to relocate the Beaufort treatment plant to provide recycled water for agriculture and a $4.7 million plan to investigate reuse opportunities at Creswick;
And sourcing new water for Ballarat from the Cardigan Groundwater Management Area.
Mr Thwaites said without immediate action, Ballarat region's water supply could be less reliable from as early as 2010.
"Population growth of up to 66,000 extra people and the effects of mid-range climate change will result in the need to secure up to 14,000 megalitres of extra water over the next 50 years," he said.
"We have identified how we can achieve that. We will have at least 18,000 megalitres available by 2055."
Central Highlands Water chairman John Barnes said the water plan was vital for the region's future.
"We have got to find enough water to be able to provide for future growth and we have got to get people to be very conservative with the way they use that water," he said.
Mr Barnes said the upgrade of the Ballarat North Wastewater Treatment Plant was expected to be finished in 2007.
The State Government, Central Highlands Water and the City of Ballarat will also examine options to provide up to 850,000 megalitres of water to Lake Wendouree under the Lake Wendouree Water Supply Options study.
Community comment is also invited on the Central Region Sustainable Water Strategy discussion paper.

Subscribe now for unlimited access.

$0/

(min cost $0)

or signup to continue reading

See subscription options

Get the latest Ballarat news in your inbox

Sign up for our newsletter to stay up to date.

We care about the protection of your data. Read our Privacy Policy.