Cobar dissatisfied with pipeline group
Wednesday October 29, 2008
Dissatisfaction with the current Albert Priest Water Conservation Group is threatening to derail Cobar Shire Council’s efforts to secure the town’s water supply for the future.
While a number of meetings have been held with interested parties, Cobar’s representatives have raised concerns that the interests of local ratepayers are not the main concern of many group members.
Cr Peter Yench, who is also a member of the Cobar Water Board, said he was concerned the conservation group is “stacked” with Nyngan people.
The current group includes representatives from Cobar Shire Council, Bogan Shire Council, Cobar Water Board, Peak Gold Mines, Endeavor Mine, Cobar Management Pty Ltd and Tritton Copper Mine, however there are concerns the number of Tritton and Bogan representatives on the committee.
“I don’t believe Tritton should be involved, they don’t draw water from the pipeline,” Cr Yench said.
“We can’t have outsiders voting on our business, it’s just not on.”
Cr Yench also expressed concern at the involvement of a private investor in the project.
The group recently met with Jazz Water to consider a private partnership proposal for the pipeline.
“We’re not interested in private people coming in on the project—we want the state and federal government to fund it,” Cr Yench said.
He said under a private partnership, Cobar residents could be forced to pay more for
water.
“The water price could double or even triple in 10 years. We don’t want water to become that expensive or Cobar will turn into a dustbowl,” he said.
Councillors have called for a full report on the progress of the group for the next council committee meeting in a fortnight.
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