Toowoomba Regional Council Prepares to Turn On Wivenhoe Pipeline

With the region experiencing one of the worst droughts on record, Toowoomba Regional Council Water and Waste Committee Chair Cr Nancy Sommerfield said Council was preparing to turn on the pipeline.

“Having a safe and reliable water supply is top of the agenda for Toowoomba Regional Council and that’s why we invested in this project,” she said.

Since 2011, the pipeline has only been used for routine testing with staff in the process of preparing the pipeline to be ready for its intended use, when required by Council.

Cr Sommerfield says that, “While the ongoing drought is heart-breaking, it’s reassuring that we have this piece of infrastructure in place which can provide up to 10,000 ML a year to our water security for users connected to the Toowoomba bulk supply.

This allocation of water won’t fill our dams, but it does provide our region with water security for many years to come.

In addition to this, we continue to ask everyone in the community to limit water usage to 200 L per person per day.

“Water restrictions are in place throughout the region and unless we receive some much-needed rain, we may need to transition to tougher restrictions and enforcement actions.”

You can learn more about the pipeline below:

At what cost this come to the rate-payer? TRC Finance and Business Strategy Committee Chair Cr Mike Williams said Council sets water pricing each year as a part of its Budget.

“Current pricing is set in place until the end of June 2019. Council will look to manage any additional costs through the usual budget processes with the aim of limiting impact on the community wherever possible.

“Unlike many other Councils, particularly those on the South East Queensland Water Grid, we own and operate our own extensive water networks that supplies clean water to more than 160,000 consumers.

“Water rates have to reflect the true cost of delivering water and maintaining and replacing infrastructure for everyone connected to the network.

“Our water business consists of over $1.4 billion in infrastructure, which is in need of significant renewal or replacement investment.

“To ensure this is a responsible approach, Council is following a price path recommended by the Queensland Treasury Corporation after they conducted an extensive review in 2016, to ensure we are able to maintain and replace our ageing water assets in a timely manner.

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