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Legislative Council - Fifty-Third Parliament, Second Session (53-2)
2015-07-01 Daily Xml
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Oak Valley Aboriginal Community Water Supply

The Hon. J.M. GAZZOLA (15:14): My question is to the Minister for Aboriginal Affairs and Reconciliation. What improvements are being made to the water supply to the remote community of Oak Valley in the far north west of the state?

The Hon. K.J. MAHER (Minister for Manufacturing and Innovation, Minister for Automotive Transformation, Minister for Aboriginal Affairs and Reconciliation) (15:14): I thank the honourable member for his very important question and his interest in these matters. SA Water manages the drinking water supplies to many regional and remote Aboriginal communities in South Australia with populations ranging between 50 and 500 people. I am very pleased to report that good progress is being made to upgrade the Oak Valley Aboriginal community water supply. The Oak Valley Aboriginal community has a population of approximately 100 people and is located around 120 kilometres northwest of Maralinga. It is one of the most remote communities in the whole of South Australia and, indeed, the whole of the country.

Until now, the main water supply to the town was transported by road tanker from remote bores to a large storage tank within the community. The water was then supplied to members of the community by way of pumps and overhead tanks. A secondary rainwater system was piped to members of the community for drinking water purposes. The infrastructure, however, was becoming worn and there is always a potential risk involved in transporting water long distances by tanker. SA Water therefore began looking at ways of making the community's water supply more reliable and efficient.

A feasibility study was conducted in 2013, as part of routine asset upgrades and maintenance, to investigate various alternatives. Of the options explored, SA Water and the Oak Valley community decided to install a pipeline linking the community of Oak Valley to bores located around 30 kilometres away. I am advised that almost $1 million worth of funding for the upgrade was provided by the state government—

The Hon. R.L. Brokenshire: Taxpayers, not the government.

The Hon. K.J. MAHER: —and SA Water has been contracted to undertake technical components of this water supply. You may be right: the honourable member is quite correct. It is money that the state government spends on behalf of the taxpayers of South Australia for the benefit of South Australians.

The Hon. R.L. Brokenshire: The taxpayers give it to you.

The PRESIDENT: Order!

The Hon. K.J. MAHER: And the honourable member is right: the money does come from taxpayers, particularly the emergency services levy that he instituted. He is quite right: that money does come by way of taxpayers to be spent on services for the benefit of South Australians.

SA Water has undertaken the technical components of the project. These include modifying the storage facilities in the community, installing new tanks partway between the bores and the community and upgrading some of the bores. Members of the Oak Valley community have also been very closely involved in this project through assistance from the commonwealth government and also through the commonwealth government's Remote Jobs and Communities Program. Around 15 Oak Valley community members have been employed and trained through the project, and SA Water is providing technical support to the community and assistance to remove rocks in some of the trenches because the community did not have the capacity to do that sort of earthworks.

The collaboration meant the upgrade was able to commence fairly quickly, with approximately 10 kilometres of the total 40 kilometres of pipework installed and pressure tested. The first stage of the project is expected to be completed very soon. I congratulate everyone involved in this project from the state government, Oak Valley and the commonwealth government through the Remote Jobs and Communities Program.

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