Harrison Infrastructure Group wins contract to investigate roads at Paradise Dam
A Bundaberg contractor has won an initial assessment contract ahead of the massive project, and the region’s farmers are demanding confirmation that money promised will still be delivered.
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A Bundaberg business has been awarded the contract to investigate roads and access points to Paradise Dam ahead of its $1.2billion rebuild.
Harrison Infrastructure Group will undertake an extensive investigation of the road network leading to the dam.
Water Minister Glenn Butcher said the road works were an important early milestone for the rebuild.
“Our government’s investment includes $30.1 million for the next 12 months, as part of the broader $1.2 billion investment in this project.” Mr Butcher said.
“With a project as significant in size as this rebuild, we need to focus on not only building the dam back stronger and safer but also ensuring the early works - particularly the road network being made safer - meet the needs of the project and the community over the long term,” he said.
“We are getting on with the job of restoring Paradise Dam and local workers from the region are going to play a crucial role, with up to eight regional jobs being supported by this contract alone.
“The major project to rebuild and strengthen Paradise Dam will create approximately 250 jobs during construction and deliver significant flow-on benefits for local businesses and contractors, like Harrison,” Mr Butcher said.
Bundaberg MP Tom Smith congratulated Harrison Infrastructure Group on winning the contract.
“The Paradise Dam Improvement Project will require significant heavy vehicle movements as quarry materials and equipment are moved to the work site and it’s great to see local businesses benefiting already for this project,” Mr Smith said
“As we’ve said before, this project is huge – restoring Paradise Dam to its original height will use almost as much concrete as when the dam was originally built.”
As part of the $2.6 million contract with Sunwater, HIG will examine haulage and construction transport needs to determine what road upgrades are necessary.
Sunwater CEO Glenn Stockton said Sunwater and HIG were engaging with North Burnett and Bundaberg regional councils and the Department of Transport and Main Roads and will contact local property owners as planning gets underway.
“Moving forward, the project team is focused on progressing design and planning approvals and planning to engage with industry to secure a construction partner.
“We will continue to work with the local community on this crucial project and will provide information about future work opportunities as they are available,” he said.
Sunwater is completing engineering design and detailed work, supported by geotechnical activities.
Early works are due to start this financial year which includes planning, design and upgrades of existing roads, investigations into suitable aggregate and other construction materials and planning the mobilisation and establishment at the construction site.
Enabling works are expected to start in 2023, including local road upgrades, with major works at the dam not expected to start until 2024, but not everyone is convinced the works will carry on as promised.
Bundaberg farming groups representing some of the region’s key produce commodities have meanwhile called on the Federal Government to confirm its commitment to co-funding the rebuild.
In a media statement, Bundaberg Fruit and Vegetable Growers, Bundaberg Canegrowers, Australian Macadamia Society, Avocados Australia, Queensland Strawberries, Passionfruit Australia, Australian Sweet Potato Growers, AgForce and Citrus Australia confirmed their concerns about the future of the Paradise Dam rebuild.
The growers said they had been hit hard by the lowering of Paradise Dam, which now holds 170,000 Megalitres (ML), which is roughly half of its original 300,000 ML capacity.
Paradise Dam supports $1 billion of agricultural output generated by the Bundaberg region and directly supports about 8000 jobs.
“The Bundaberg region has worked tirelessly to secure support for the reinstatement of Paradise Dam from the state and federal governments,” a media statement from the grower group stated.
Queensland State Water Minister Glenn Butcher and Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk made an announcement at Paradise Dam in February 2022 that they would commit $600m to the rebuild if the Federal Government matched that commitment.
Then deputy prime minister Barnaby Joyce matched the commitment in a press conference at Macadamias Australia in February 2022.
It was then that the region’s farming groups called on the Australian Labor Party to reinstate the dam.
“Pleasingly, the ALP matched the commitment in March 2022 with an announcement by Senator Anthony Chisholm and the federal Labor candidates for the region, that a federal Labor Government would match the Queensland Government’s funding commitment of $600 Million for the reinstatement of Paradise Dam.”
The farming alliance claims to have now written to the new Minister for Water, Tanya Plibersek and the new Minister for Agriculture, Murray Watt, requesting written confirmation of the Federal Government’s support for the Queensland Government’s plans to reinstate the dam and the funding commitment made by Senator Chisholm during the election campaign.
“The farming groups have also invited the two ministers to visit the Bundaberg region and see firsthand the nation building wealth and opportunity that Paradise Dam supports,” the media statement said.
Canegrower Judy Plath said there were concerns that a change of government could mean a change in policy position.
“We thought the decision to co-fund the Paradise Dam with the Queensland Labor Government was too important to leave to chance that we felt as an industry that it was very important to seek further clarification that the new albanese government will continue to support the region and Paradise Dam and partner with the Palaszczuk Government to make sure that project occurs,” Ms Plath said.
“We’ve struggled with a lot of uncertainty since 2019 when we learnt that Paradise Dam was going to be lowered, but the Palaszczuk Government saying that they intended to rebuild the dam was very, very welcome news to this farming community, however that announcement relied on matching funding from the federal government.
“Now we have the matching funding from the federal government we think it’s very important to continue to have certainty in the region about the future of Paradise Dam.
“We really need to hear from the Albanese Government that they’re as committed to rebuilding the dam as the Palaszczuk Government is.”
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