The $15 million Greenbushes to Kirup pipeline has been completed and will link properties in South West Western Australia to the Warren Blackwood Regional Water Supply Scheme (WBRWSS).
The 17km pipeline will convey drinking water from Greenbushes through Balingup and north to Mullalyup.
It will replace the area’s previous drinking water source, Kirup Dam, which was taken offline in 2018 due to increasingly unreliable rainfall, driven by climate change, and associated water quality concerns.
Completion of the new pipeline will also see an end to water carting arrangements that were in place for Mullalyup and Kirup, meaning fewer truck movements on local roads.
The WBRWSS supplies Nannup, Manjimup, Bridgetown, Hester, Boyup Brook, Greenbushes and Balingup, with the addition of Mullalyup and Kirup helping ensure greater water security for South West communities in the face of climate change.
The project was delivered by Western Australian company Valmec, and supported by 28 South West businesses, with works carefully planned to ensure minimum environmental impact and disruption to residents and businesses.
As part of the project, Water Corporation is also supporting several local community projects, including working with the Balingup community to build and install bird boxes to help foster sustainable environments, and funding signage to promote awareness of local heritage stones that are historic to the town.
The project follows the August 2021 completion of the Albany to Denmark pipeline – a
$25 million project connecting Denmark to the Lower Great Southern Towns Water Supply Scheme, ensuring the town is no longer solely reliant on rainfall to supply its drinking water.
Western Australia Water Minister, Dave Kelly, said, “Historically, many smaller South West towns have sourced drinking water from local dams, however, the impact of climate change means rainfall is no longer a reliable water source for many communities.
“To combat this, the McGowan Government, through Water Corporation, is working proactively to ensure regional Western Australians continue to have a safe, secure drinking water supply well into the future.
“Since 2017, the McGowan Government has invested over half a billion dollars in regional water projects, including several designed to connect communities to larger, more reliable regional supply schemes.
“Despite declining rainfall, Western Australians can have confidence in long-term water supply security as we continue to investigate new water sources where previous sources are becoming unviable.”
Collie-Preston MLA, Jodie Hanns, said, “As promised, the McGowan Government has delivered this project for residents of Mullalyup and Kirup which will offer far greater water supply certainty now and in the future.
“It also means Water Corporation will no longer need to cart water from Donnybrook to Kirup, which will reduce truck movements and help make local roads safer for all.”
Warren-Blackwood MLA, Jane Kelsbie, said, “Reliable, high-quality water supply is a key economic driver in the South West, especially in the Warren-Blackwood region which has a high level of forest and agricultural land use.
“I am proud of this investment from the McGowan Government which has created local jobs and boosted our community’s rainfall independence.”
