Tim Holding should lift lid on cost of water...

Tim Holding should lift lid on cost of water plan
http://www.news.com.au/heraldsun/story/0,21985,25720330-664,00.html

Olga Galacho
July 02, 2009 12:00am

LAST Friday Victorian Water Minister Tim Holding said he would not be sending cleaned-up poo and other waste water to the Latrobe Valley to be used to cool down coal-fired electricity generators.

It's too expensive, he reckons.

So in these drought-stressed times, the Latrobe Valley generators will be able to continue to draw 100 gigalitres a year of fresh water from the Latrobe River and the Blue Rock and Moondarra Reservoirs.

The long-awaited "Business Case" that Mr Holding released before the weekend put the cost to pipe treated waste water from Melbourne's Eastern Treatment Plant to the Latrobe Valley at $3.9 billion

That figure is almost four times greater than original estimates.

When Brave New World asked how the $3.9 billion figure had been arrived at, a spokesman for Mr Holding said that information would not be made available other than through an approved Freedom of Information order.

What the state government has actually done is caved in to paranoid Latrobe Valley unions and baulked at demands by generators for payouts to make the switch to treated water.

The business case noted that there were "economic" benefits to releasing treated water, about 67 gigalitres, to the LaTrobe Valley.

Also noted was "a lingering concern from unions whether the recycled water will be safe for workers at the power stations".

For heaven's sake, they don't have to drink it!

But more significantly, the business case revealed: "The generators have indicated that they will need incentives to voluntarily switch from their existing supply arrangements".

Brave New World hopes to soon reveal the size of the incentive and what component of the $3.9 billion it makes up.

But yesterday, the minister's spokesman did not have the figures to hand.

It is audacious beyond belief that an electricity industry that already gets its brown coal for next to nix, enjoys a truckload of government concessions, has for decades had unhindered access to precious fresh water, and will get billions of dollars in handouts when emissions trading begins would now demand incentives for accepting treated waste water delivered to its door.

For a government to not disclose the amount the rent-seekers have asked for, and also refuse to detail what costs make up its $3.9 billion estimate for the project, should beggar belief.

But sadly, it just reeks of deja vu.

Last year, when the Auditor-General ran his ruler over another Victorian water plan, he concluded that the Department of Sustainability and Environment should clearly set out the processes it is pursuing to verify project estimates, and publish more rigorous information as it becomes available.

When will Minister Holding stop flushing down the toilet the concerns about his lack of transparency and his mismanagement of water issues?