Re: Weekly water update [Merged]
Brumby urged to built new dam
Peter Flaherty
November 08, 2007 12:00am
http://www.news.com.au/heraldsun/story/0,21985,22720893-2862,00.html
THE floods that hit Gippsland this week were a terrible waste of water that should have been stored and used, Victorian farmers say.
Victorian Farmers Federation president Simon Ramsay said any new ideas to harvest or divert heavy run-off in the region before it flooded farms and towns needed to be explored.
Mr Ramsay was responding yesterday to renewed calls to build a dam above Glenmaggie Weir as well as a proposal to divert water from the Aberfeldy River into the Thomson Dam.
Mr Ramsay said capturing and harvesting Gippsland's floodwaters would also do away with the need to build a pipeline from the drought-stricken Goulburn Valley to boost Melbourne's water supplies.
"It's a shame that when we get great rainfall in Gippsland, Glenmaggie has to open its gates and people downstream suffer," Mr Ramsay said.
"There must be a better way to capture this water."
Mr Ramsay said he did not wish to comment directly on proposals to build a new dam on the Barkly River above Glenmaggie or to divert water from the Aberfeldy River to the Thomson Dam.
"But if the science is telling us that there is going to be more floods in Gippsland, and if we have an under-supply of water in the Goulburn Valley, then it doesn't take a mathematician to work out where future supplies of water should come from," he said.
Nationals leader Peter Ryan said the Gippsland floods made it imperative to assess the feasibility of building a new dam above Glenmaggie or to expand the weir's capacity.
"A lot of water flows through Gippsland when there is a flood," Mr Ryan said.
"With today's technology and our better understanding of the environment, we can build a system that benefits the environment, helps prevent flooding and boosts the local economy."
Mr Ryan said while the Barkly River north of Licola had been discussed as a possible site for a new dam, he would leave the location to the experts.
"But a new dam will have benefits for everybody if we do it right."
However, he said he would be concerned at any plan to divert water from the Aberfeldy River to the Thomson Dam.
The idea was floated this week as a way of using the river's excess water during floods to bolster Melbourne's water supply.
"Thanks to the Thomson Dam, Gippsland already supplies 60 per cent of Melbourne's water," Mr Ryan said.
"I think Gippslanders would be most reluctant to see any more of their water go to Melbourne unless they could see significant benefits coming their way."
Water Minister Tim Holding said the solutions to Victoria's water challenges were based around dramatically improving water-use efficiency by modernising irrigation systems and by finding non-rainfall-dependent supplies, such as desalination.
"The projects in the Government's $4.9 billion water plan offer the most secure water for our future," he said.
"More dams simply lock Victoria into an ongoing cycle of reliance on rainfall, and with drought and climate change this is an unsustainable and irresponsible strategy."
)
