6/12/02
The completion of a $13million contract at Ghooli near Southern Cross has further underlined the State Government's commitment to provide Goldfields residents with a reliable water supply.
Government Enterprises Minister Nick Griffiths said the new water tank would provide six times the previous storage capacity, while the new pumping station would double the existing pumping capability from this key facility on the Goldfields pipeline to a maximum of 120 million litres of water per day.
Mr Griffiths made his comments during a visit today to the Ghooli facilities, 10km east of Southern Cross, to officially open the new installations.
The 50-million litre capacity tank, costing more than $4.5million, took seven months to construct and is the biggest yet built in Western Australia.
The tank stands 15m high and is 66m in diameter. The new pumping station, which replaced a station built in the 1970s, cost a further $8.75million.
"This major project and other work in recent years puts Kalgoorlie-Boulder, Coolgardie and other areas receiving water from the pipeline from Mundaring Weir in a very good position, even in severe drought years," Mr Griffiths said.
"In fact, the supply through the pipeline right through to Kalgoorlie-Boulder is as secure as the rest of the integrated water supply system serving Pinjarra, Mandurah and the Perth metropolitan area."
The new Ghooli tank and pumping station will make water delivery more efficient by minimising the need for booster pumping along the pipeline.
Mr Griffiths said that since 1990 more than $77million had been spent on upgrading the pipeline and ancillary facilities on projects designed to ensure that the Water Corporation kept up with demand on the system.
"Additionally, more than $6million was spent in Perth to enable up to 100 million litres a day, of mostly groundwater from the northern suburbs, to be pumped into Mundaring Weir," he said.
"This has been an excellent investment, particularly during the severe drought as the corporation now has the option of augmenting supplies to the Goldfields with water from either Canning or Wungong dams, or using groundwater from Perth's northern suburbs.
"It also reflects the remarkable flexibility of the integrated water supply system, particularly when rainfall is minimal."
Mr Griffiths commended the Water Corporation on its management of the project and paid tribute to more than 50 people who worked on the Ghooli contract.
"I am particularly pleased that all work associated with this massive project was completed on time and under budget," he said.
Minister's Office - 9222 8950
