Steven Miles announces $10.8m for water carting to Mount Morgan
The state government has announced a special assistance package of more than $10m to help council with the cost of carting water to Mount Morgan.
Rockhampton
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The State Government has loosened the pressure tap on the cost of carting water to Mount Morgan, pouring millions into the cost until the completion of the pipeline project.
Deputy Premier Steven Miles announced on Tuesday the state government would dedicate $10.8 million into helping Rockhampton Regional Council continue to truck drinking water from Gracemere to Mount Morgan.
The special assistance package will cover the costs of carting water until the pipeline’s completion, with the funding available to council over the 2022-23 and 2023-24 financial years.
$40 million for the Mount Morgan Pipeline project was allocated by the State Government in their 2022-23 budget, seeing the major infrastructure fully funded.
The funding for the project came after the detailed business case was completed and adopted by Rockhampton Regional Council at an infrastructure committee meeting in April last year.
Trucking of water to the Mount Morgan community began in March 2021 after the No.7 Dam dropped to 9.9 per cent, leaving the community with only six to nine months of drinking water.
The bill so far for carting water has reached more than $5 million.
Rockhampton Mayor Tony Williams said the announcement was “music” to his ears.
“It’s been a long journey and it’s been something that’s kept me awake many nights, worry about how we fund the Mount Morgan project being level six water restrictions,” he said.
“The bill has been racking up since we started it and it was really music to my ears when the Deputy Premier made that announcement.
“It’s really going to boost our budget going forward.”
Mr Miles said the funding would keep the essential service on the road while the pipeline from Gracemere to Mount Morgan was built.
“Since March 2021, Mount Morgan has been on strict level six water restrictions and relying on their water supply being carted from Gracemere,” he said.
“Council has been carting water to the Mount Morgan Treatment Plant, making about 20 water tanker deliveries a day and meeting costs of about $5.7 million to date.”
Tenders for the Mount Morgan Pipeline project are still open and construction is expected to get under way this year.
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