State government blames Covid for delay in Bradfield Scheme report
The state government is blaming the Covid-19 pandemic for a six-month delay in the finalisation of a report into the viability of a new Bradfield Scheme.
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The state government has failed to reveal the viability of a new Bradfield Scheme in Queensland, blaming the Covid-19 pandemic for a six-month delay in the finalisation of a report.
Ahead of the 2020 state election, and following an announcement by the Opposition, Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk revealed her government was working on a scoping study, with an independent panel to probe the scheme’s financial, economic, environmental, social and technical viability.
It came about nine months after former Opposition Leader Deb Frecklington pledged $20 million for a CSIRO study to probe the multi-billion dollar water scheme that aimed to droughtproof parched western Queensland.
On September 2, 2020, the government said the panel was due to report back within a year.
However it last week blamed the impact of Covid-19 travel restrictions for the report’s delay and Water Minister Glenn Butcher was unable to say when the government expected to receive it.
“Due to the impact of Covid-19 travel restrictions direct engagement by the Bradfield Panel with various stakeholders was hampered and the deadline for the finalisation of the report was extended,” a government spokeswoman said.
“The expert panel’s report will be considered thoroughly by the government and released in due course.”
Opposition water and construction of dams spokeswoman Deb Frecklington slammed the news, saying she had requested briefings from Mr Butcher and his department on the progress of the report however was refused.
“The fact the Premier and her failed Water Minister have missed their own deadline is embarrassing and shows they are only interested in how things look, not how they actually are,” she said.
“For the government to blame Covid travel restrictions is a stunning admission of failure, given intrastate travel has been hardly affected throughout the pandemic.”
Mr Butcher hit back, saying the government took a “responsible approach to managing taxpayer funds.”
“In contrast, when Deb Frecklington was opposition leader, she failed to fund her own Bradfield Scheme at the election. And she lost,” he said.
The original Bradfield Scheme, first mooted by prominent engineer John Bradfield during the 1930s, involved diverting water from the upper Tully, Herbert and Burdekin Rivers inland using tunnels, dams and pumps to create a huge irrigation area in central Queensland.
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