Rockhampton Regional Council on Thursday set a new date for a meeting about a sustainable water supply to Mount Morgan.
The meeting to be held at the Mount Morgan School of Arts was postponed on Monday because of the recent Queensland COVID-19 outbreak, and will now be held on Tuesday, April 13.
The council will talk about the various permanent supply options available to Mount Morgan residents, including a pipeline expected to cost at least $25 million.
Councillor Donna Kirkland said although some people had suggested holding the meeting outside, it would be better for discussion if it were indoors.
“We’ve looked at this, but believe it’s much better for the meeting to be held indoors so that we can provide seating, have a screen for the presentation, use the walls for post it notes to help shape the discussion, and plug in speakers so everyone can hear us,” she said.
The report also states council are looking at opportunities to secure the township’s water supply security.
Opportunities include new water storages constructed, pipelines to augment supply to Mount Morgan, making safe use of the abundant water supply in the mine pit and the potential for a pumped hydro-electric scheme.
Consultation with the Mount Morgan community on these options is expected to commence within the next couple of months.
The Mount Morgan community has been congratulated on their continued waterwise behaviour with average annual residential water usage per property in Mount Morgan almost 50 per cent lower than that in Rockhampton in recent years.
The trial revealed the process took even less time than initially thought.
Fitzroy River Water manager Dr Jason Plumb said he was very happy with the trial.
“We have successfully trialed the delivery of drinking water from Gracemere, up the Razorback, and safely through the township of Mount Morgan,” Dr Plumb said. Fitzroy River Water manager Jason Plumb. Picture: Contributed
“We are just finishing pumping and unloading about 25,000 litres of drinking water into the storage reservoir behind me.
“It’s been quite successful, and we are very confident we will be able to meet demand as required in the future.”
In the meantime the council intends to look into and consult residents about a more sustainable solution.
The No.7 dam is now at 9.9 per cent – three to six months’ worth of drinkable water – but the council stressed residents would not be forsaken.
Fitzroy River Water manager Jason Plumb said the three to six month estimate was based on expected evaporation and the fact Mount Morgan residents used about 750 kilolitres of water a day.
“There is the potential as the dam level continues to drop that the water might reach a point where it becomes more difficult to treat … that might become the obvious trigger commencing tanking in water,” he said.