16/1/04
The construction of a massive new water reservoir at Kalgoorlie-Boulder would almost double the city's water storage capacity to 880,000 kilolitres, Government Enterprises Minister Nick Griffiths said today.
In the Goldfields for meetings, Mr Griffiths announced that the $40million reservoir complex and associated facilities would be built on a 40ha site in Johns Road, near the West Kalgoorlie Industrial Estate.
Major design work would begin next month. On-site preparatory work would continue until mid-2005 when construction is scheduled to commence.
The Minister said construction was expected to continue for 30 months with up to 60 people on site at peak times. The first 400,000 kilolitre-capacity reservoir was expected to be fully operational by the summer of 2007.
"The reservoir will provide the key to water security by almost doubling storage capacity in the city to more than three weeks' supply," Mr Griffiths said.
He said he was confident Kalgoorlie-Boulder's water requirements would continue to be met with a high degree of reliability through upgrades and refurbishment work on the Goldfields pipeline, associated pumping stations and other facilities.
Kalgoorlie-Boulder was not solely dependent on Mundaring Weir as a supply source since the connection of the Goldfields and Agricultural Water Supply Scheme to the Integrated Water Supply Scheme.
Water supplies for the Goldfields might now be drawn from a number of dams in the Darling Scarp and a network of groundwater systems on the Swan coastal plain. The sources had greatly improved the security of supply to Western Australia's largest inland community.
"The pipeline infrastructure today is a very different example of engineering to that constructed in 1903," the Minister said.
"It has been expanded to the point where the amount of water leaving Mundaring pump station is six times that of the original capacity of C Y O'Connor's pipeline."
Mr Griffiths said the Water Corporation would also spend more than $160million on upgrading 14 key pump stations, increasing storage capacity at three crucial sites and replacing 30km of the Goldfields pipeline.
The next project in the upgrade program, Walgoolan Pump Station east of Merredin, was well advanced and expected to be completed next month.
"Pump stations at Chidlow, Southern Cross, Grass Valley, Koorarawalyee and Boondi will be upgraded over the next seven years at a cost of $29million," the Minister said.
He said the ongoing works program would ensure the Goldfields water lifeline would continue to meet expected demands in its second century of operation.
Minister's office: 9222 8950
