Wetalla - details of Toowoomba City Council's deal with Acland Coal dribble out ...
Things the Toowoomba City Council doesn't want to tell you.
They're too secret.
A maximum 43 year contract with an alleged in-built promise that one day the Council will go ahead with their ill-fated recycled water plant.
Oops, it's public now.
Excerpt from New Hope Corporation AGM Chairman's address:
15 November 2007
Today it gives me great pleasure to announce that New Hope has successfully concluded negotiations with Toowoomba City Council regarding a waste water supply to the New Acland Mine. The agreement will provide water to the mine from 2009 for a period of 28 years, which can be extended by 3, five year options.
The contract anticipates that Toowoomba will eventually provide a water recycling facility, in which case Acland would take the high salt waste stream from such a plant.
This project essentially "drought proofs" the mine and underpins potential growth projects over the coming years.
New Hope will build, own and operate a 47 kilometre pipeline from the Toowoomba facility at Wetalla to the New Acland Mine.
See - New Hope Corporation - AGM address.
With the Toowoomba Regional Council election approaching, this deal will annoy many people.
The downstream irrigators will not be amused with the Council.
Nor will 32,330 people who voted NO - they won't be happy with the Toowoomba City Council indicating they still want to build a stand-alone recycled water plant.
Seems the wishes of big business might be trying to over-rule the views of the people - 'let them drink recycled water so we can use the waste product in our mine'. Pity a recycled water plant wouldn't 'drought-proof' Toowoomba.
You can bet that none of the directors of New Hope Corporation are planning to move to Toowoomba.
Sensible to want to build, own and operate the pipeline though. After the Wetalla bore fiasco, no-one would really want the Toowoomba City Council managing a picnic, let alone a pipeline.
One thing for sure - the 2008 Toowoomba Regional Election is going to be keenly fought with the distinct possibility of the current sitting Yes Councillors looking for new jobs shortly thereafter ...
posted by Concerned Ratepayer at 10:23 AM
12 Comments:
this council has consistently misled the people and will be booted out next year
1:11 PM, November 15, 2007
council cover ups = no more councillors
2:20 PM, November 15, 2007
Flanagan would be around 100 by the time the contract expired.
2:37 PM, November 15, 2007
What right do these idiots have to contract Tmba for so long.
All so who says we are getting a recycled sewage plant - is that coming from our dictator Anna Bligh.
God help us if Kevin Rudd (or Dudd) gets in!
4:23 PM, November 15, 2007
What do this council think they are doing to ignore the wishes of 32,330 people. This is another cog in the wheel along the road to Kev Flanagan and his recycled sewage plant.
This is not about bringing water to the community , it's all about water for coal mines. Acland is just the start as the fields at Felton are to come on line after Acland plays out and where do they get the water then???
There should not have been a vote taken in secret which would allow a chairman of a coal company to say the one day we will have a recycled sewage plant just so they get water and stuff the farmers who have grown crops for a long time and of course stuff the people and what ever their concerns are.
We must put people on Council who will have the back bone to stand up to this pressure and vote acording to the wishes of the people and not allow "experts" to play with our water supply.
4:57 PM, November 15, 2007
Can't wait for March!
5:18 PM, November 15, 2007
Deals like this need to be made public as it's the only way that a council is accountable to the people who pay their salaries. But you can see why they want to keep them secret.
5:48 PM, November 15, 2007
When will outgoing Mayor Thorley give up - she lost and she is off to green pastures ( her own words) and a good % can not wait for that to happen. Her mischievous statement about the incoming Regional Council possibly adopting a stand alone recycled plant is a figment of her imagination.
The only way that can happen is to re-elect the 5 pack of yes councillors and they will certainly bring it to you. We need to elect a new Council!
6:54 AM, November 16, 2007
There seems to be a clear choice emerging at the election next year. Vote for the current ladies and Ramia and they will try to force a recycled water plant on Toowoomba. Vote for people standing against such a project and all the other water options will be examined.
9:55 AM, November 16, 2007
too true it's the only choice
10:42 AM, November 16, 2007
What was once supplied by God has now become a 'Commodity’ that can be bought and sold to the highest bidder. Our only way of self-perseveration is to change how we look at our land & water use. I would give you a good site to look at but I cannot find it in my jumble of files so I will have to get back to you when I do..
5:52 AM, November 17, 2007
I have seen the Brisbane River & It’s Tributaries with minor flooding before the disastrous 1974 flood where the farms were inundated with flood water. These have been replaced with Urban and Industrial Development, with drainage on a budget
No wonder the 1974 deluge overwhelmed the Government officials on all levels.
Brisbane will not handle the next flood very well, especially when so much is going into drought planning, they will be swamped, up the creek and swept down.
6:30 AM, November 17, 2007
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