Coast water restrictions in the pipeline
12:00a.m. 10th October 2008
Queensland Water Commission chair Elizabeth Nosworthy talks to Sunshine Coast Regional Council mayor Bob Abbot at Nambour. Photo: Nicholas Falconer/ 178781
The Sunshine Coast will have to endure tougher water restrictions when its water is siphoned off next year to prop up the rest of the region.
The Coast, which currently has plenty of water and is on minimum restrictions, will be placed on medium restrictions from March 30 next year to help ease the pain in other parts of the region
Water will be redirected through the $9 billion water grid.
Sunshine Coast Regional Council mayor Bob Abbot was told about the plan when he met Queensland water commission chairwoman Elizabeth Nosworthy in Nambour.
Mr Abbot said he had sought and been given an assurance no water would be taken until he had a written guarantee the Coast would get it back if required.
“I’m not agreeing to anything until we have an agreement guaranteeing the Sunshine Coast’s water supply,” he said.
“The bottom line is I at least want a guarantee that there’ll be a pipeline headed north if we get into trouble.”
Ms Nosworthy said the Coast would be looked after if it needed more water.
“I’m very confident I will come back with the assurances Mr Abbott is looking for,” she said.
Ms Nosworthy admitted there was no way at this stage to redirect water to the Coast but said the grid, which is currently under construction, guaranteed water security for Coast residents.
The Coast, she said, had to share the burden.
“Medium water restrictions are a first step to bringing the Sunshine Coast in line with the rest of the south-east,” she said.
Water restrictions for businesses will be phased in gradually from March 30 and businesses will have to take active steps to become water efficient and reduce water use.
Businesses that use more than 10 million litres of water a annum will be required to submit a water efficiency management plan for council approval.
The plan must demonstrate how the business will reduce water use by 25% or achieve best practice water use.
Residents can use a single hand-held hose – with twist-trigger nozzle – between 4pm and 4.30pm on Saturday and Tuesday for odd numbered houses.
For even and un-numbered homes it is 4pm to 4.30pm on Sunday and Wednesday.
An efficient irrigation system or sprinkler can be used instead of a hose to water gardens.
Cars can be washed during the approved hours but lawns cannot be watered.
Bucket watering of gardens can take place on any day between 4pm and 8am.
Recent Comments
Sounds like the only guarantee here is that the coast is going to be made to suffer just like Brisbane even though we have adequate resources to cater for our own needs.
Who is going to police these new restriction or will we be required to dob in our neighbours?
Don't think Nosworthy that it's beyond some in this Community to take on the role of a French Resistance WW2 type action on this pipeline .
We planned our Water Supply properly unlike Brisbane State Politicians who put dams in the wrong areas. Hence favours to mates was never the best way to plan present and future water supply or any other major infrastructure for this State .
And will M/S Nosworthy try and hide behind a Pillar outside a Building as she has done previously to avoid being interviewed by the Media ?
However Anna and her ' Mate ' are up against Big Bob and this Community and they haven't really seen us in Action yet !
Pressure needs to be brought to bear in this area.
Im not to sure if anyone knows this but it was the Nationals that built those dams that dont work. Also what is the opisitions policy on anything? Can someone tell me. All I have hard them say is we wont build the trav dam and we will de-almigate the councils. Does the opisition even have any policies at the moment? I still find it hard to see how we can be angry with labor when the sunshine coast has been in the hands of the national and librals for the last 10 years on a state and federal level.
Am I missing something here?
Brisbane Council had adequate warning that their water supply system wasn't good enough. Yet they waited until the last moments to instigate water saving devices and programs for the area.
We're in the previous Caloundra Shire, and just by buying a front loader washing machine and, although we weren't water wasters to start with, just became more careful...we've managed to cut our water useage from an average 1500 litres per day to 550 litres per day. We have a young family, pets, swimming pool and two cars and we didn't even feel we were 'going without' to achieve the 550 litres per day.
Granted though, we do seem to receive more rain here but perhaps by planting more trees instead of continually cutting them down in the Brisbane area, they might attract more rain.
The pipeline needs to be two way and the last thing QLD needs is a government of moneyed elites hiding behind graffiti whilst they look after their mates. Whilst Labor is bad the LNP are a nightmare.
or download the entire book from http://epress.anu.edu.au/troubled_waters...
I am not sure what the council de-amalgamation issue has to do with our induced water problem though.
I do have to wonder about the lack of serious action to fix Brisbane's leaking water pipes as raised by matthew1 above. I guess it is cheaper economically and politically for the ALP Government to just take it from the Sunshine Coast.
Don't think Traveston will help either, no responsible person would ever approve it. Everyone knows you are just trying to con the voters in Brisbane. More fool them if they don't know the facts - Treveston will not save them!
A couple of the smaller dams on the coast are actually very shallow, and that is a high contributing factor as why they look so full.
However, having said that, I don’t mind sharing SOME water. I would be wrapped if the mayor could broker a deal to only allow Brisbane to take the current rain fall rate, IF we were 80% capacity or more. This would allow us to share, but not at our expense.
I like the questions raised regarding the "user pays" philosophy ... but didn't we get screwed with our rates increases to make up for the 'lack of adequate funding' from the government ?
Furthermore, Nosworthy (between bites) says that the need is greater in Brisbane because of their "population explosion" - has she seen the SUNSHINE Coast in the last decade ? (no, its the beachy thing ABOVE Brisbane on your map !)
This same governemtn is also propsing fast-tracking new residential developments to accomodate how many tens of thousands of people ? Yet stealing our water at the same time ? Um, can anybody else see a problem in that ?
Perhaps he'd be better off pressing Mark McArdle and Lawrence Springborg for a resolution ???
The water wastage underground has been known for well over a decade in Brisbane. Budgetary financial models proving that action was required to rectify the underground wasteage prepared and presented to Brisbane Council only to fall on deaf ears. Beattie even refused to allow State govnt employees to attend water planning meetings with Brisbane Council employees.
The whole sordid story is digesting. I would rather break Beatties jaw than accept an apology from him.
A dam up here is not the issue - it is the political decision to locate it at Traveston. Technically, the current location is as flawed as the current Brisbane dams.
Tanks are more sustainable than dams. Traveston Dam alone will cost $2.5b - $1.8b for current construction and $700m to relocate infrastructure - highway, roads, electricity, pipes etc. $2.5b equates to over $7,000 / house in SEQ for a water tank. But the government can't sell off tanks but it can sell off a Water grid (dam) to private enterprise. So much for a Labor govnt.
I hope that the credit crisis escalates into a full blown depression so that the apathetic majority of Australians will be forced to stand up and say to the politicians and beaurecrats enough is enough.
Viva la Revolution
I started writing on this issue to the Minister in February this year on behalf of potentially affected businesses with numerous follow up letters, only receiving a letter from his adviser five months later which did not answer the information I had requested.
There are small businesses who use water as part of their operations who potentially face increased costs to comply with these new restrictions. How useless is the current Government if they can’t even address the basic concerns of people who are going to have to pay for their ineptitude. I’m angry about this because their laziness and disregard for Coast residents and businesses is costing us.
In response, earlier this year I released on behalf of the LNP an alternative plan which would give the Sunshine Coast and South East Queensland a secure water supply, without the NPI-2 or Traveston Dam. You can read this online at www.climateproof.com.au.
Fiona Simpson - Member for Maroochydore
businesses, community groups and large residential developments in
harvesting rain and stormwater
New technologies and incentives to help households maximise
their rainwater catchment, with ongoing rebates for water tanks and
water saving devices
A desalination plant at Bribie Island
Directing recycled water to power stations, industry and
agriculture, not into drinking supplies
Abandoning plans for Traveston Crossing Dam and its dependant
Northern Pipeline Interconnector Stage 2
This is the plan?
That isnt exactly anything new, infact that is alot less than the current government is doing. Infact as the sitty member for the erea for a very decent amount of time how come your elected area is one of the worst places for infustructure in australia?
Instead of playing pollitics why not offer real alternatives and solutions, what are your plans for public transport for instance, please dont say more buses they have clearly failed there job. Infact please tell me what are your parties real policies?
saying your not doing something the Labor party has planned isnt a policy.
Both parties are promising big centralised solutions that can easily be sold as a private monopoly. No doubt the LNP not to be out done by Labor will flog it all off at the first opportunity.
The LNP promise to continue assistance with rainwater tanks is commendable but falls far short on the commonsense offered by the Greens. The cheapest option that should be in the mix of solutions is to mandate the use of rainwater tanks as the Greens are proposing:
http://qld.greens.org.au/policies/Qld-po...
While there is probably no real alternative, the situation is made more offensive by the pathetic and self indulgent posturing of the Premier, Minister and officials on the matter. Add it to the increasing list of failures.
The lack of an attempt to engage the Sunshine Coast community clearly demonstrates the lack of regard the Government has for the area.
And the alternative Government is no better.
Have your say
We welcome comments on our stories and blogs - after all it's your site. Please note comments should be on-topic and not abusive. Comments are checked before publication.
Thanks for sharing your thoughts
Your comments will be checked, for legal reasons, before being posted live.
Thanks again for contributing to the Daily's online community.
We value your views.
Comment again