Regional prosperity

Initiatives

These initiatives are underway between October 2023 and December 2024.

Our initiatives:

• Deliver the Strategic water infrastructure plan and pipeline (SWIP)
• Continue to implement recommendations from the Bradfield Regional Assessment and Development Panel’s report
• Develop recommendations for Queensland’s approach to the Australian Government Water Reform Roadmap for improving integrity and confidence in Murray–Darling Basin water markets
• Continue to deliver actions under the Queensland Water Markets Optimisation Action Plan
• Progress the detailed business case on a desalination plant in Gladstone to supply water to the green hydrogen industry
• Provide water resource availability advice and opportunities to inform the McKinlay and Richmond Critical Minerals Zone Working Group in delivering the Critical Minerals Strategy
• Lead regional water assessments (RWA) for:
  • Southern and Darling Downs – finalise assessment
  • Bundaberg and Burnett – finalise assessment
  • Tablelands – finalise assessment
  • Central Queensland (proposed)
  • Burdekin – progress assessment
  • South East Queensland – refer to the SEQ City Deal

Initiative in partnership with Department of State Development, Infrastructure, Local Government and Planning and the Australian Government:

• Facilitate funding for enabling water infrastructure for Townsville City Council’s Lansdown Eco-Industrial Precinct.

Initiatives in partnership with Sunwater, Seqwater and Gladstone Area Water Board:

• Provide oversight of the planning and delivery of key water infrastructure projects
  • Burdekin Falls Dam raising project - Environmental impact assessment preparation
  • Rookwood Weir - project completion
  • Paradise Dam improvement project
  • Fitzroy to Gladstone pipeline
  • Seqwater Dam improvement program

Initiative in partnership with Department of Environment and Science:

• Implement South East Queensland (SEQ) water initiatives under the trilateral SEQ City Deal program
  • deliver the SEQ Agricultural Regional Water Assessment, including opportunities to enhance food security and water use efficiency
  • support Lockyer Valley Regional Council with funding and advice in the Water for Lockyer project
  • support COMSEQ (Council of Mayors South East Queensland) in progressing the resilient rivers agenda

Queensland Hydro Initiatives:

• Continue detailed design and approval activities for the Borumba pumped hydro energy storage project
• Progress onsite investigations and technical analysis supporting the detailed analytical report for the Pioneer–Burdekin pumped hydro energy storage project

Sunwater initiative:

• Deliver a detailed business case for water supply options in the Julia Creek and Richmond Critical Minerals Zone.