Geelong’s drinking water supply secured after $40m pipeline upgrades

The region’s water security has seen a boost, after the completion of $40m upgrades to the drinking water pipeline linking Geelong to Melbourne. Get the details.

The state government says the upgraded pipeline will be able to cover almost two thirds of the Geelong region’s water demands on its own. Picture: supplied

Geelong’s supply of drinking water has gotten a major boost, with billions more litres of drinking water flowing down the pipe.

The state government on Friday announced it had completed $40m works on the Melbourne to Geelong pipeline, expanding the 59km pipeline’s capacity from 16 billion litres a year to 22 billion.

The pipeline allows water from the state’s desalination plant to reach Geelong and will help prevent water restrictions in the future.

Barwon Water will use the pipeline to replenish local storages, which sat at 36 per cent capacity at the end of winter.

At Pettavel Basin, workers dug up an existing section of buried pipe, removed it and replaced it with a new section with automated isolation valves and a tee off to new inlets. Picture: supplied

That figure was the lowest since 2008, amid the millennium drought and came after Geelong’s water storages hit a six-year low during summer.

The pipeline helps water flow all the way to Colac, as southwest Victoria faced some of the state’s driest conditions.

Peta Maddy, chair of Barwon Water, said the pipeline would help ensure Geelong’s water supply remained robust.

“The pipeline is part of a portfolio of sources that safeguards supply to customers and helps us continue to provide high quality, affordable and secure services,” she said.

Water minister, Gayle Tierney, said the upgrade ensured access to “affordable, safe and secure drinking water supplies”.

“With our population growing and the climate getting drier, we are investing in the critical infrastructure needed to move water to where it is needed,” she said.

Lara MP Ella George said the upgrades secured Geelong’s water supply.

Upgrade works on the Melbourne to Geelong pipeline at Pettavel Basin in Waurn Ponds in May. Picture: supplied

The works, which included modifications to two basins, have meant the water can now reach an additional 28,000 families and businesses in the Geelong region, according to the state government and 60 per cent of Geelong’s peak water demand can be met through the pipeline alone.

The underground pipeline stretches from Melbourne’s water supply network at Cowie’s Creek, west of Werribee, to Geelong’s storage at Lovely Banks.

Last summer was the driest Victorian summer since 2013-14 according to the Bureau of Meterology and prompted the state government ordering 50 billion litres from the Victorian desalination plant.

The pipeline upgrade comes after a cutting-edge plans for an alternative water grid, now called the Sustainable Water Network, has been floated earlier to bolster the region’s water security.

Under the proposal, large amounts of distribute recycled water and treated stormwater would be used for nondrinking uses across the region.

Last month, Barwon Water chief-executive Shaun Cumming reiterated the importance of the Sustainable Water Network, after the organisation launched a state-first Hydraloop greywater recycling system in September.

Originally published as Geelong’s drinking water supply secured after $40m pipeline upgrades