Latest RWA update

In late April Mayor Pennisi, CEO Dave Burges and Councillor Tancred attended the most recent Regional Water Assessment (RWA) strategic advisory group meeting.  Given the well-publicised reluctance of Councillor Tancred to share RWA information with his fellow Councillors and the community, POW! is here to provide an example of TRANSPARENCY AND OPENNESS. 

The RWA had already shortlisted the Warwick to Stanthorpe (via Connolly Dam) pipeline and the expansion of the Stanthorpe Recycled Water Scheme as projects to progress to detailed analysis.

Granite Belt Irrigation Project (Emu Swamp Dam) and Severn River Offstream Storage now join the already shortlisted options.  This detailed analysis will ensure a consistent comparison of the costs and benefits of each of the options.

Once this process has been completed there will be public consultation on these proposals, which is anticipated to be towards the middle of this year. 

There is however one very interesting point to note from the meeting.  Those of you who have water allocations in the Granite Belt will no doubt be somewhat surprised to hear that at that meeting your Council suggested that ‘sleeper’ and ‘dozer’ entitlements could be used for future irrigation needs.  These entitlements are valuable, and just because they are not currently being used doesn’t mean that their owners don’t have plans for them or that having these water allocations does not increase the value of their properties.  Why is our Council, which is meant to represent all residents, putting forward suggestions like this solely for the benefit of irrigators?    

There are at least 6 different groups on the RWA that represent irrigators.  In terms of the rest of us there is only our Council.  As you can see, they are hardly on our side.  With friends like these …

7 May 2023