AFTER months of jumping through hoops, Bathurst has officially been placed on the critical needs list by the NSW Government.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
Member for Bathurst Paul Toole revealed the news on Thursday afternoon, saying the listing will assist Bathurst Regional Council in delivering short to medium term water security projects for the community.
The critical needs list is part of temporary legislation that was introduced into parliament late last year to ensure drought-stricken communities will not run out of drinking water.
Being on this list makes Bathurst eligible for vital water infrastructure projects to be fast-tracked to shore up the city's water supply.
Council has made it clear in recent months that its priorities are stormwater harvesting and the Winburndale Dam pipeline.
It was announced in early March that these projects would be added to the critical needs list, however council had to wait for confirmation of when the two critical needs projects would be listed within the schedules, and continue to provide additional information.
The slow process angered councillors, who continued to call for the bureaucrats to just put Bathurst on the list.
Among the most vocal were deputy mayor Ian North and councillor Warren Aubin, the latter of which was very pleased to receive the news on Wednesday.
He described the process as "very frustrating", but said the important thing was that council could now progress its key water security projects.
The stormwater harvesting project is of particular importance.
"The stormwater harvesting is the big one, because we've seen every rain event that we've had, that water has just gone down the gurgler; we should have been able to save that," Cr Aubin said.
"We will be able to do that once this is built."
While it will be useful all year round, sadly the stormwater harvesting infrastructure is unlikely to be constructed in time to take advantage of the forecast for good rain over winter.
Cr Aubin said September was the earliest he could see it being completed by at this stage.
"We'll miss that winter rain, but in saying that, the winter rain will aid and abet our dam," he said.
Once the short-term priority projects are executed, Cr Aubin said council should turn its attention to getting a pipeline from Chifley Dam to Bathurst.
He is also continuing to call for the dam wall to be raised again.
The Water Supply (Critical Needs) Act began on November 21, 2019 and will be in effect for two years.
It can be extended by up to 12 months by the government if town water supplies continue to be at risk due to ongoing drought.
