A pipeline connecting Orange to the Macquarie River will address a water emergency and provide security for a growing city.
Funding for the $47 million joint project between Orange City Council, the State Government and the Federal Government was announced today.
The Federal Government has committed $20 million, the State Government $18.2 million and Orange City Council $8.8 million.
Orange Mayor John Davis said it was the largest and most significant infrastructure project in the city’s 150 year history.
"Improving the water supply has been this city’s great challenge. Orange city councillors and staff and Orange residents knew that more work was needed on the city’s water infrastructure and now it will be delivered. An upgrade of the Spring Creek Dam, two Australian firsts in stormwater harvesting projects and groundwater connections were a great start," Cr Davis said.
"The Council and the Federal and State governments are well aware of the challenges facing the city and have acted to address the issue. The Macquarie pipeline will be delivered to address critical shortages in the short term and provide capacity for a sustainable supply."
With funding now secured, Council will commence more detailed planning and consultation. A comprehensive environmental assessment and community engagement will be vital components of this project.
While this project is critical to the future of this city it is only one component of a diverse water strategy. Orange City Council has taken an integrated approach with no reliance on one water source. (See graphs below)
A preliminary assessment has found that in an average year the Macquarie pipeline could deliver up to 1800 megalitres to the city. In an average year, 130,000 megalitres pass through this section of the Macquarie River. Council is proposing to transfer less than 1.5 per cent of these flows.
Unlike most cities using rivers as urban supplies, it is proposed to operate the Macquarie pipeline scheme on the stormwater harvesting model with the bulk of extraction taking place at times of high flows.
The proposed Macquarie project does not result in Orange receiving an additional entitlement from the Murray Darling System. Rather it acts as an additional point from which Council can gain supply for the city to meet its current annual restricted demand. Council has an annual entitlement of 7800 megalitres.
"For years Orange got by on a traditional supply approach using dams. Times and conditions have changed and that approach is no longer enough. To their credit, each year Orange residents have used less water from a record high in 2002 of 7100 megs to a record low of 3872 megs for the 2009/10 year. Despite these savings and the delivery of new sources the reservoirs continued to fall. Action was needed and Council and the Federal and State governments had to respond," Cr Davis said.
"There will be concerns raised about this project by people downstream of Orange. Council understands these concerns and it is committed to establishing an operating regime that limits the impact on the river, the environment and the downstream users."
The Macquarie connection project was initially identified in the Centroc Water Security Study, as a project that could be implemented in a relatively short period of time and one that could deliver a reliable source of additional water to Orange.
Council engaged consultants MWH to examine this option in more detail, including undertaking an assessment of the viability of this project as well as investigating a number of potential routes for pipelines to the Macquarie River from Orange.
This feasibility study concluded the most appropriate route for a pipeline from Orange was to the Macquarie River north of the city, with the off take point located downstream of the confluence of the Macquarie and Turon rivers, a distance of approximately 40-45 kilometres from Orange.
As identified by the consultant, this location "provides the best potential source of water, has manageable engineering challenges and can be installed in the preferred timeline".
Orange lies at the top of the Macquarie catchment in the Murray Darling Basin. At 862 metres above sea level, Orange has the highest elevation of Australia’s 50 most populace cities. The altitude means the city relies on a small catchment compared with the majority of inland cities. It is one of the few Australian cities that does not lie on a river or have access to a large catchment.
With a population of 38,685, Orange is the ninth largest city in NSW and the 36th largest city in Australia. It is the major regional service centre for a population exceeding 100,000. Orange has an annual gross regional product in excess of $1.7 billion. The city provides employment for more than 17,000 people with 3200 of those coming from outside the Orange local government area.
With the advent of new supply sources, including stormwater harvesting and groundwater, plus ongoing demand management, efficiencies and rain, the Orange supply can be extended towards two years. This will provide enough time to construct the Macquarie project, which in concert with other Council initiatives will deliver Orange a more secure and sustainable water supply.
Mayor Davis said a lot of work had gone into bringing this project forward.
"Massive projects like this take a massive commitment and hard work. There are many people who made this project a reality,"Cr Davis said.
These include Federal and State Water ministers Penny Wong and Phil Costa and their staff Member for Macquarie Bob Debus and his staff, Parliamentary Secretary for Water Dr Mike Kelly, Senator Steve Hutchins, Orange City Councillors, including Jeff Whitton and Glenn Taylor lobbying on the city’s behalf, Orange City Council staff, Centroc, Cabonne Mayor Kevin Duffy and staff from the Department of Environment, Water, Heritage and Arts.
Cr Duffy has made a big effort since the announcement of his pre-selection for Calare and has been very effective in working with the Federal Government.
Figure 1: Orange Water Supply Option 2008
Figure 2: Orange Water Supply Options 2009 – 2012
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