I am pleased to announce that two further leading edge water projects in Queensland worth $15.4 million will receive funding of $5.93 million from the Australian Government's Water Fund.
Along with the five Queensland water projects already announced - Gold Coast capturing water losses project, Mackay Wastewater recycling project, Bundaberg Groundwater project, NQ Water supply upgrade, and Water Futures Toowoomba - these water projects in Queensland bring to a total seven Queensland projects supported to date, representing total investments of over $225 million with contributions of over $100 million from the Australian Government's Water Smart Programme.
The Australian Government will provide $3.3 million towards a $10 million project at Dalby in Queensland. The project will be one of the first occasions in the world where coal seam methane water has been used for potable water supply.
Through this project the Dalby Town Council will initially return up to 1350 megalitres a year of extraction licences back to existing water sources, providing benefits to the environment. The project is reliant on an agreement between Arrow Energy and Dalby Town Council to supply water for the project.
The Government will also provide $2.6 million to a $5.4 million project at Hervey Bay in Queensland to install advanced water meters on residential properties to be read remotely.
This will provide the opportunity to introduce a "time of use" billing system which will encourage home owners to use water in off-peak times. This is a significant innovation in residential water management. The project will improve information for water planners, defer construction of water supply infrastructure and potentially achieve water savings of up to 1000 megalitres a year.
I congratulate Wide Bay Water, the Dalby Town Council and Arrow Energy for taking the initiative to find solutions to our water management challenges.
Details of these projects are available by downloading the fact sheets below. Further information is available on the National Water Commission website, http://www.nwc.gov.au.