The Hunter River Times

Following consultation with residents of Blandford, Wingen and Parkville about their water needs, additional design options are being developed for how and where water could be delivered at an affordable cost.

For the next few weeks Upper Hunter Shire Council staff and contractors will be around the villages drilling and surveying to collect more geotechnical information for the next designs.

A few months ago, Upper Hunter Shire Council wrote to all residents outlining the likely costs and designs for a full ‘town’ water reticulation system in each village and including a feedback survey to gauge community interest. Over 80 forms were filled out by residents and returned in September.

Three public meetings were held in September and over 70 residents attended to ask questions and share their views with Council staff and Mayor Maurice Collison.

Cr Collison said the results of the community consultations were similar across the villages, with the majority indicating that costs for connection to a ‘town’ water scheme were too high, and that the primary use of water would be to ‘top up’ existing private tanks during dry times. The possibility of water filling stations in each village was popular, with some residents suggesting this was all they required to meet their needs. There are also engineering options to pursue a level of service (reduced continuity of supply, reduced control over water quality, and reduced pressure) similar to the ‘rural connections to trunk mains’ that would have a lower cost.

At the other end of the scale, there was some demand for water services even at a high connection cost of up to $20,000.

 “We’ve heard you, and we are going back to the drawing board to investigate more affordable options,” Cr Collison said.

Factors that will be re-looked at include the reach of any network, direct supply from the pipeline without additional storage in the villages, water standpipes, and systems that may not include a guarantee of potable water.”

Once the new designs are complete in early 2021, Council will consult with residents again.

Connection of Blandford, Wingen, and Parkville to the Scone to Murrurundi pipeline is supported with Restart NSW government funding and is expected to be completed in 2023.

The pipeline itself cost $14.2 million, with over $13 million in funding provided by the NSW Government’s Restart NSW Water Security for Regions program. The remainder of the project funding was provided by Council.