Longreach wants long-term water security after 11th-hour reprieve from water crisis
A major outback Queensland tourism centre wants the state and federal governments to help provide long-term water security to the region after spring rains saved the town from a genuine water crisis.
QLD News
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Longreach is calling on state and federal governments to help provide long-term water security to the region after spring rains gave the iconic western town an 11th-hour reprieve from a genuine water crisis.
Longreach Mayor Tony Rayner said few Queenslanders were aware how perilous the water supply remained in a town with a growing thirst for water as industry and tourism flourished.
The town is reliant on the Thomson River for water and, unlike many western communities, doesn’t draw on the Great Artesian Basin, which provides water for up to 80 regional Queensland towns.
“It was only a few weeks ago that we were down to a depth of around 1.8m in one section of the river which was of serious concern to everyone,’’ Mr Rayner said.
“Those recent falls we had here and in the catchment area improved the situation dramatically but the long-term issue needs to be addressed.”
Longreach hosts not only a kangaroo processing plant and export facility, which provides about 35 jobs but also provides culverts to much of regional and western Queensland through a concrete batching plant.
“Industry needs water, as does tourism, and our problem of low water volumes is only predicted to get worse given climate change modelling suggests we can no longer be reliant on those wet seasons which feed the Thomson,” Mr Rayner said.
He and the Longreach Council have quietly lobbied state and federal governments for a modest $10m to raise five weirs along the river by one metre. The increased height is expected to improve the town’s water supply by about 28 per cent.
The state government’s assessment in 2019 acknowledged that projected future demand meant Longreach was at risk of falling into low water levels during extended periods of drought, “with the potential for water supply shortfalls occurring even with water restrictions being imposed”.
Queensland Water Minister Glenn Butcher is expected to visit Longreach next Tuesday to assess the situation further.
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