Water security and delivering durable water infrastructure is the number one priority outlined in Blueprint 100, the shared vision for Tamworth.
Yesterday, June 14, Tamworth Regional Council kicked off the Tamworth Water Security Plan project with the first phase of community engagement now underway.
The Plan will identify options to improve Tamworth, Kootingal and Moonbi’s water security. This will include infrastructure to be built as well as non-infrastructure options such as changes to the way water is allocated to us.
Project Manager Naomi Schipanski says water is essential for our community to thrive and making sure we have a water system that meets the needs of our growing community is the purpose of the Tamworth Water Security Plan being developed.
“Tamworth is expected to grow significantly in population, housing and employment over the next 30 years,” Ms Schipanski said.
“To achieve this, communities and businesses require confidence that water sources are reliable and able to support future demand.”
“Currently, our water supply is dependent on the weather. During periods of average rainfall, it works well, however during periods of extended drought our system is vulnerable.”
“We need to plan for Tamworth’s growth with a water supply system that is reliable and sustainable,” she said.
Council will investigate all supply and demand options available for Tamworth, Moonbi and Kootingal, engage with our community and work closely with government agencies, industry experts and agricultural, business and other large water users to develop the plan.
Technical investigations are well advanced, the next step is to engage with the Tamworth community to understand what we value about water at home, at school, for business, for our public spaces and our health and wellbeing.
The Tamworth Water Security Plan will be developed over the next 18 months. There will be three engagement phases during this time:
- Phase 1: Learning together, May – July 2024
- Phase 2a: Considering the options, September to December 2024
- Phase 2b: Checking what we heard, February to April 2025 (if needed)
- Phase 3: Public exhibition Draft Tamworth Water Security Plan, July to November 2025
“The first phase of engagement is about learning together,” Ms Schipanski said.
“We want to make sure our community understands our water system and where our water comes from.”
“On the other hand, we want to understand what’s important to our community in terms of water supply and use, as this will be a key part of our decision-making about the supply and demand options we consider.”
Village water supplies, which are notoriously some of the worst in the area in terms of water quality, are outside this project’s scope. The water future for Attunga, Barraba, Bendemeer, Manilla and Nundle are being evaluated separately.
Visit the project engagement page to find out more: https://haveyoursay.tamworth.nsw.gov.au/tamworth-water-security-plan
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