The ongoing drought means it is imperative that work is started on the Quipolly water project, Liverpool Plains shire's mayor says.
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Councillor Andrew Hope said while Minister for Water Melinda Pavey had indicated in a letter that the $28.3 million-dollar project could go to tender, the concept design and specifications were yet to be approved.
Cr Hope is now calling on the Department of Planning, Industry and Environment to endorse the design as a matter or urgency so Werris Creek's ageing plant (WTP) can be replaced.
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The mayor said the council must have an S60 approval for construction and the endorsed design would inform the detailed design to be developed by the successful tenderer.
"We stand the risk that if further down the track the department doesn't accept the proposal from the successful tenderer - and further changes are necessary after we have committed a contractor to a design - that engaged contractor could legitimately claim increased costs to make the changes at the later stage, a potential large financial risk council believes ratepayers should not be exposed to," Cr Hope said.
"As a small rural shire already devastated by drought, we cannot responsibly afford to take any more risk with finite ratepayer resources already stretched to the limit."
Cr Hope said the need for a new treatment plant was "even more urgent" because there had been no inflow since 2016 and if the drought continued, Werris Creek's water supply was "the most-at-risk of running dry".
"We have no idea when we will get rains that will replenish the dam so council requires confirmations that can allow us to proceed with the Quipolly water project so that if the dam runs dry, we can avoid the huge cost of trucking water in," he said.
"Furthermore, the ongoing problems of the quality of the water to be treated and delivered to Werris Creek consumers cannot be fully addressed without the enhanced treatment processes of a new plant.
"Our predicament is particularly frustrating because this project was planned well in advance of this drought event and we could have been a lot further advanced towards being able to deal with the problems if the dam was to run dry."
