21 December 2020
After years of drought and water scarcity, all of us in the region know just how valuable and precious water is, and Council continues to work daily towards securing all options for future water security. Last week at its Ordinary Meeting, Southern Downs Regional Council voted to support the Emu Swamp Dam project by agreeing to participate and acquire a 585ML water allocation and sell or lease a 450ML water allocation from Storm King Dam to the project, subject to conditions.
The historic decision comes after Council voted at its November meeting in favour of supporting the project to access Council land for a pipeline investigation and approach the Queensland Government to purchase a parcel of land.
Southern Downs Mayor Vic Pennisi said that while the latest vote was another positive step, this decision was just one part of the solution and many other options were still on the table to obtain secure water supply sources for the whole region.
“Council is not complacent about the issue of finding long term solutions to securing water for the region,” Mayor Pennisi said.
“History shows that drought will always be a part of our landscape and we are reviewing a number of options to shore up our water supply for all the towns across the Southern Downs.
“At this stage of our review into water security, the Emu Swamp Dam project currently delivers some immediate and affordable solutions for assisting with water security, but that is not to say that this won’t change as we progress with our investigations. It’s all about moving forward, one step at a time, making informed decisions, exploring the facts and staying focused on finding solutions.”
Councillor Stephen Tancred said he supported the motion to provide water security through the Emu Swamp Dam project with Stanthorpe’s 5,000 residents in mind.
“Our opportunity at the recent meeting is to take another positive step in finding a water solution for Stanthorpe,” Councillor Tancred said.
Please refer to the fact sheet (PDF 259.5KB) for more information.
For all the latest Council news and information, visit www.sdrc.qld.gov.au. Alternatively, call 1300 MY SDRC (1300 697 372), email mail@sdrc.qld.gov.au, or use the MySDRC app.