Multiple regions across New South Wales will share $40 million for new water infrastructure projects to increase water storage and help communities better cope with climate change.
The New South Wales Connections package is jointly funded by the Federal Government ($15.8 million) and the New South Wales Government alongside other partners ($24.3 million) and consists of five projects.
These include Lake Wyangan Water Sustainability project, Walcha Off-Stream Water Storage, West Wyalong Water Reliability project, Broken Hill to Menindee Graziers Pipeline and Urbenville Water Supply project.
For the Lake Wyangan Water Sustainability project, a new 5.2-kilometre pipeline will expand irrigation of dry land farming areas. Walcha Off-Stream Water Storage will include a new 300-megalitre off-stream storage dam. The West Wyalong Water Reliability project will upgrade the network to help expand the Lake Cowal Gold Mine.
The Broken Hill to Menindee Graziers Pipeline will see the new pipeline be built to support graziers across 320,000 hectares of farmland and the Urbenville Water Supply project will be expanded with three raw water tanks installed, boosting supply certainty for livestock, dairy and crop production.
NSW Minister for Water, Property and Housing Melinda Pavey said the projects are just the latest tools in the NSW Government’s arsenal to drive economic growth in our regions and deliver safe, secure and sustainable water to communities across the state.
“$40 million worth of critical water projects are now shovel-ready and will bring much-needed economic benefits to local communities during the next 18 months and beyond,” Pavey said.
“Together, they’ll deliver over 60 jobs during construction and more than 230 ongoing jobs. When completed, they’ll create around 1,650 megalitres in extra water storage capacity and over 4000 megalitres a year in increased water availability.”
All projects are expected to be completed by mid-2023.
For more information on the projects, click here.
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