What we're doing
Murrumbidgee to Googong Water Transfer
Community update – March 2010
ACTEW Corporation is committed to providing a safe, secure and sustainable water supply for the people of the ACT and region. The Murrumbidgee to Googong Water Transfer is a key component in ACTEW’s long term plan to ensure water security, leading to an increasingly prosperous region and a vibrant and healthy community.
What is the Murrumbidgee to Googong Water Transfer?
The Murrumbidgee to Googong Water Transfer involves transferring water from the Murrumbidgee River through a 13 kilometre underground pipeline to Burra Creek in NSW. The water will then flow approximately 10 kilometres down Burra Creek into Googong Reservoir. It is one component of water security projects now being implemented by ACTEW, to secure the region's water supply.
Why is it needed?
The Murrumbidgee to Googong Water Transfer was chosen from a range of options as it will:
- Reduce the severity of future water restrictions;
- Increase the diversity of water sources supplying the ACT region, for example, should the Cotter Catchment again be impacted by severe bushfires; and
- Provide additional supply into Googong Reservoir (inflows into Googong Reservoir have decreased by about 85 per cent during the period from 2001 to 2008).
The NSW Government declared the Murrumbidgee to Googong Water Transfer to be a "critical infrastructure project" under Section 75 of the NSW Environmental Planning and Assessment Act. This recognises the urgent need to implement the project to secure water supply for the region, while still providing for the rigorous scrutiny of any environmental impacts.
Further information about critical infrastructure status can be obtained on the NSW Department of Planning website www.planning.nsw.gov.au.
Environmental impacts and mitigation
As the project is located in both the ACT and NSW, ACTEW prepared a draft Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for the ACT and an Environmental Assessment (EA) for NSW, as a single document that satisfied the requirements of both jurisdictions.
Comprehensive studies informed the preparation of the report to assess potential environmental and community impacts. These include specialist assessments on hydrology, ecology, heritage, soils and groundwater, landscape and visual amenity, noise and vibration, climate, greenhouse gas, social, traffic, transport and health.
The Final EIS concludes that with appropriate mitigation measures there is unlikely to be any significant residual impacts as a result of the project.
How long will the project take?
The final EIS and preferred project report was lodged in both the ACT and NSW on 21 December 2009 is available on the ACTEW, ACTPLA and NSW Department of Planning websites. The EIS addresses issues raised during the public consultation undertaken during the Public Exhibition of the draft EIS/EA and in some 80 submissions received during this period.
Draft conditions of approval have now been issued by NSW Department of Planning for response by ACTEW. Concurrently ACTEW is also preparing a Public Environment Report (PER) in order to gain approval from the Commonwealth Government. Once all approvals are received, construction of the Murrumbidgee to Googong Water Transfer is expected to commence late 2010 and be completed in 2011.
Greenhouse Gas Abatement Strategy
As part of ACTEW’s commitment to offset greenhouse gas emissions from the construction and operation of the project, ACTEW will offset greenhouses gas emissions through a number of potential options including the use of biodiesel during construction, and high efficiency energy use, and will then offset all remaining greenhouse gas emissions.
A mini-hydro power generation facility will co-located near the Burra Creek discharge structure at the junction of Williamsdale and Burra Roads, upstream from the low level crossing. This will allow ACTEW to recover about 25-30 per cent of the total electricity used for the pumping of water, and reduce the operating costs.