Standing at the bottom of Goulburn’s bone-dry Pejar Dam in NSW, it is obvious that the weakness of such large water storages is their susceptibility to drought, observed an article in Queensland Country Life (1 June 2006 p10).
Object lesson for Qld govt: Because of this, Federal Parliamentary Secretary for Water Malcolm Turnbull believes the Queensland Government should take greater consideration of water recycling options in the face of the backlash against its proposed Mary River dam.
Wastewater option for Goulburn: Mr Turnbull made the suggestion in unveiling plans to give water-starved Goulburn residents a say in whether or not a wastewater recycling system should be installed.
Dams have inherent problems: "There will be a lot of opposition in Brisbane and South East Queensland to damming the Mary River," Mr Tumbull said. "Dams are a problem everywhere. Big, shallow dams are not very efficient, and they do have a big impact on the environment," he said.
Recycling a "known quantity": "The great thing about recycling is that you know that is water that you’ve got. You know that you can just keep on recycling. Obviously, you can’t recycle 100 percent, but that gives you a security, regardless of the climate, that I think every community is going to need."
Qld to take a look at greywater: It is against this backdrop that follow-up discussions about the proposed Brisbane-Darling Downs grey water pipeline will take place in Canberra within the next week or so.
Qld to dip toe into wastewater: Meanwhile, the Queensland Government has supported installing a wastewater recycling plant in Toowoomba, a plan which is subject to community approval at a referendum to be held later this year.
Queensland Country Life, 1/6/2006, p. 10
Source: Erisk Net