In a massive win for country New South Wales, phase 2 of the state Government’s $32.8 million Town Water Risk Reduction Program has been extended to June 2025. This is locking in vital tools to ensure at-risk communities can continue to rely on clean and dependable water services.
Since 2021, the program has partnered with more than 90 regional councils and local water utilities (LWUs), supporting LWUs in tackling the most severe risks to town water.
“The Town Water Risk Reduction Program has already kicked major goals. It has enabled councils and local water utilities to plan and deliver robust, world-class water and sewerage services across our state,” said New South Wales Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment, and Water (DCCEEW) Executive Director of Operations Resilience, Ashraf El-Sherbini said.
“Under the program, we’ve already rolled out $1.5 million worth of grants to ten regional councils, allowing them to upgrade their water treatment plant infrastructure and boost drinking water quality.”
The program supports LWUs during emergencies like droughts, bushfires, and floods, ensuring they can continue to deliver safe and secure town water. In partnership with Training Services NSW, it also seeks to address critical skill shortages. It boosts training and employment opportunities for school leavers, Aboriginal students, and existing water operators. Through a partnership with NSW Health, LWUs can get assistance in optimising the performance of high-risk water treatment infrastructure. WaterNSW is involved by helping enable LWUs to improve dam safety and address water quality issues.
“Everyone in NSW deserves clean, quality drinking water, which is why we’re charging ahead with this crucial work,” Mr El-Sherbini said.
The program extension means more time to deliver these essential support services and the opportunity to add additional initiatives at no extra cost. These include extending on-site water treatment plant support to help LWUs invest in more skilled operators and developing new staff support tools while improving their operations. They will also respond to the findings of the parliamentary inquiry into protecting LWUs from privatisation. It will inform new ways to support the industry
“We’ve also delivered a series of incident and emergency response workshops to provide essential training to water operators to prepare for natural disasters,” Mr El-Sherbini said.
The time extension also allows us to continue collaborating with councils and partner agencies. The program will include more high-risk LWUs while identifying and addressing more potential risks to town water.
The additional six months will allow us to deliver critical work informing the program’s potential future beyond 2025.
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