Toowoomba Water Futures - the millstone around ratepayers' necks ...

[Note - error corrected - Premier Beattie is building three not four recycled water plants as part of the SEQ project. Unfortunately for Mayor Thorley, this makes her costings for Water Futures look even more out of whack.]

The debate over Mayor Thorley's failed Water Futures campaign continues.

Some things just don't change ... at least until the Council elections next year. Some Councillors are still very keen on misleading the people in Toowoomba.

Regardless of the issue of reduced water flows, the fundamental point remains - Mayor Thorley and Engineering Head Flanagan did whatever they could to avoid an independent costing of the Water Futures recycling proposal and harped on about it costing only $68 million.

No independent costing was ever done.

Should the Mayor and Flanagan wish to put the Water Futures proposal back on the table before next March, they should be prepared to allow an independent costing of the project.

And what would that find?

Premier Beattie is building three recycled water plants and a pipeline for an estimated cost of $1.7 billion. This will no doubt blow out and is perhaps why PM Howard and Minister Turnbull are trying to pin Premier Beattie down on his costings.

So if Mayor Thorley can build a recycled water plant for $68 million, why can't Premier Beattie build three AWTs for $272 million plus some change for a pipeline. Then he wouldn't need all of PM Howard's $408 million. He could give some back.

Why?

Because it can't be done.

Premier Beattie is actually building three advanced water treatment (recycled water) plants plus a pipeline and they are costing upwards of $1.7 billion. Even if the pipeline is ballparked at $600 million (and that seems unlikely), that leaves $366 million per recycled water plant.

For Mayor Thorley and Mr Flanagan to maintain that they could build one in Toowoomba for $68 million is pure nonsense. And it is false and misleading to continue to claim so.

Perhaps we could build the plant and ask Thorley and Flanagan to reimburse Toowoomba for every cent the cost exceeds $68 million.

Now there's an offer they are unlikely to accept.

They're equally unlikely to accept an offer to independently cost the Water Futures project because they know that their claim that it is the cheapest option (which is their main claim why Toowoomba should proceed with it) is just plain wrong. They've been caught out - Premier Beattie's costings show they have misled Toowoomba residents - but they still refuse to admit it.

Excerpt from the Chronicle (annotated):

Debate on water still flows

25 April 2007

Would reduced water flows, prompted by Level 5 water restrictions and greywater re-use, have hindered the production of the Water Futures recycling plant?

That's if the July 31 vote had been Yes instead of the overwhelming No vote that sunk the project.

No, the contentious issue that divided the city hasn't died. [And won't die until after the 2008 Council elections.]

Snow Manners has reignited the debate after Michele Alroe claimed Toowoomba would have rated better in the Queensland Treasury Corporation review if the Advanced Water Treatment Plant had proceeded.

Toowoomba rated "moderate with a developing outlook". [Cr Alroe should be very glad the QTC didn't rate individual Councillor's performances!]

The review stated the ongoing drought and the uncertainty of a future water supply was a grave concern to the city's outlook.

Cr Alroe said had the vote supported the Water Futures project, then the outlook may have been deemed "positive". [Or maybe it wouldn't - but it doesn't really matter.]

"The water would have just been running into Cooby Dam by now - it's a tragedy the opportunity was missed," she said.

[The real tragedy for Toowoomba is that Mayor Thorley and her gaggle of Yes Councillors didn't resign immediately after the 31 July referendum vote. However, this is where Cr Alroe steps in to mislead Toowoomba residents. Even using the ambitious plans laid out in the NWC funding application - Section 1.0, page 15 - no recycled water was to flow into Cooby before August 2007 at the earliest with Cooby Dam then offline for testing - and this assumed that the current drought was over (actual words used in the NWC application). Remember, no recycled water would have flowed into homes and businesses before 2011-2012. Water Futures was no solution to the current drought - a fact Mr Flanagan finally admitted during the debate.]

Cr Manners said the region would have had a "white elephant" because there would not have been enough water to ensure the plant would operate properly.

The Yes supporters started to bristle. [Sore losers that they continue to be - get over it.]

Cr Alroe retorted that the plant would have been the "hero on the hill". [More likely the millstone around Toowoomba ratepayers' necks.]

Cr Manners' No case colleagues were reluctant to join the crossfire.

Mayor Dianne Thorley summoned Water Futures 'crusader' and Director of Engineering Services Kevin Flanagan to join the meeting [after wondering outloud "what have you done!"] and present actual statistics to the debate.

He proffered the reduced amount of water was not affecting the flow of solids through the sewerage system. [Rocket scientist stuff - anyone with a toilet in Toowoomba knows this!]

To satisfy Cr Manners, Mr Flanagan will provide a full briefing to the council committee meetings next week.