FATE OF WATER RECYCLING SCHEME IN LABOR’s HANDS

Gippsland MP Peter Hall says the fate of a push to increase water recycling
and use of recycled water in Melbourne is in the hands of the Parliamentary
Labor Party.

Mr Hall said his Private Members Bill, which proposes fixed targets for the
recycling and re-use of water in Melbourne, received in-principal support
when a resolution supporting its introduction passed Parliament’s Upper
House yesterday

The bill will now be sent to the Legislative Assembly.

“My colleagues and I are extremely proud that members of the Legislative
Council have voted unanimously in favour of introducing the bill, which
seeks additional recycling to address shortages of water in Melbourne,”
said Mr Hall.

“Country areas are leading the way when it comes to water recycling – with
towns like Bendigo already recycling 100 per cent of their waste water.

“According to the government, Melbourne currently recycles 22.5 per cent of
its waste water but we believe more can be done to ensure Victoria’s
biggest city is self-sufficient when it comes to its water supply.

“At the moment huge volumes of Melbourne’s waste water are lost when they
are pumped out to sea at Gunnamatta or run out through stormwater drains
into the bay.

“We believe much more of this water could be salvaged and treated to
replace potable water where appropriate and this bill would establish a
framework whereby water authorities were committed to specific targets to
recycle and reuse water.

“In its own paper, Our Water Our Future, the government said the potential
yield from recycling Melbourne’s waste water is somewhere between 95 and
225 gigalitres.

“We’ve enjoyed the in-principal support of government members in the Upper
House, so now it is up to their colleagues in the Assembly to allow debate
on this bill and support a proposal that will achieve enormous water
savings for Melbourne.”

Mr Hall said the Coalition did not believe residents of Melbourne were
happy with Labor’s current approach to securing water to meet the city’s
growing requirements.

“I believe many Melbourne residents are unhappy with the government’s
knee-jerk response to the water crisis, which was to hastily commit to a
desalination plant and a pipe to pump water over the Great Divide to
Melbourne.

“As the Auditor General showed last month, the plan to pipe water to
Melbourne was ill-thought out and the government has failed to consider its
ability to achieve the water savings it promised to achieve by upgrading
irrigation systems.

“I think many Melburnians are actually embarrassed by a proposal that will
see a major food-producing region of Victoria drained of water to flush
metropolitan toilets and water gardens.

“I’m sure they’d prefer for Melbourne to live within its own water means
and for communities in the north to retain that water to use on the food
crops we all enjoy.

“The desalination plant that Labor has proposed is also the subject of
concern in metropolitan communities and many Melburnians would much prefer
an alternative.

“As it stands, the plant will consume vast amounts of energy at a time when
many are seeking to reduce their carbon footprint and will lead to massive
increases in water bills.

“The fact that the Brumby Government continues to conceal the true cost of
this project, a cost that will ultimately be worn by households, is a
matter of real concern to those who live in the city.

“The fact is the majority of Melburnians would prefer water recycling
initiatives.

“I urge the Brumby Government to not reject this bill and the water
recycling measures it proposes out of hand.

“It is my sincere hope Labor members actually consult their constituents to
see what water saving measures they’d prefer, as I believe water recycling
and substitution would come in at the top of the list.”