"Councillor Wall's attempts to run political cover for the Keneally government's dam have left him isolated and exposed.
"He has little choice but to step down. If he remains in office he will end his term as a lame duck mayor with no authority.
"Councillor Wall is paying the price for defying community opposition to the dam.
"Labor MP for Newcastle and enthusiastic Tillegra promoter Jodi McKay should pay careful attention to Mayor Wall's fate.
"The Keneally government has relied on Glenn Wall's defiance of Council's October 2009 resolution against Tillegra to perpetuate the myth that the local Dungog community was largely in support of the $477 million.
"Their cover is now gone.
"Tillegra is opposed throughout the Hunter, including in the community that was supposed to be welcoming the massive dam.
"Councillor Wall and his small group of Tillegra boosters have failed in their attempt to convince the community that short-lived construction jobs would compensate for the loss of on-going employment in agriculture.
"Council's vote reflects the overwhelming concern that Tillegra will not only damage the local environment but would also undermine the region's economic future.
"Jodi McKay should take the very clear message coming from Dungog Council back to state Cabinet. They should think again about their support for the dam that very few people want," Dr Kaye said.
For more information: John Kaye 0407 195 455
]]>"The Mayor has been running political cover for a dam that is unpopular and damaging to the local community, economy and environment.
"At its October meeting last year Dungog Council voted that it could not support the proposed Tillegra dam project as detailed in Hunter Water’s EAR, and to call on the state government to review the social, economic and environmental costs and to commission an Upper House inquiry.
"Only Glenn Wall and one other councillor voted against this motion.
"The Mayor has failed in his duty to act on the substance and spirit of the council's resolution.
"Dungog is at risk of being foisted with a massive dam that is unwanted and will inflict untold damage on the local economy.
"The Keneally government is desperate to keep Glenn Wall in his key job to help them push ahead with Tillegra.
"Ms McKay's intervention is another example of her government's callous disregard for the local consequences of this dam. She does not speak for the people of Dungog or the Williams River Valley.
"It is time for the local council to be led by a mayor who stands up for jobs and the environment. If Cr Wall cannot or will not represent the people of Dungog Shire, he should stand aside.
"Tonight's vote is a chance for the councillors to put in place a Mayor who will provide it," Dr Kaye said.
For more information: John Kaye 0407 195 455
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"Cancelling the project would allow for half a billion dollars worth of important new infrastructure spending.
"Tillegra Dam is completely unnecessary and is heading towards becoming a millstone on the state’s economy.
"Population growth and future droughts in the Lower Hunter can be dealt with by improving water efficiency and adaptive water saving rules.
"These solutions are much cheaper and will not require massive borrowings at the expense of other important infra-structure.
"Hunter Water is pushing ahead with the second most expensive supply option. Only desalination would cost more per kilolitre.
"It is time for the NSW government to impose some economic sense on the water utility and cancel the dam," Dr Kaye said.
For more information: John Kaye 0407 195 455
"The community is very concerned that Hunter Water will sign contracts with construction companies in what is likely to be the dying days of the NSW Labor government.
"By the time the planning process is completed the Keneally government will effectively be in caretaker mode.
"It will lack the moral authority to sign contracts and lock the community and the in-coming government into a dam that is strongly opposed.
"Even by Hunter Water's deeply flawed and biased projections, delaying the dam by six months will make no difference to the long term water security of the Hunter.
"Premier Keneally must step in and put the planning process on hold.
"Her government has no right to lock the community into a dam that is now opposed by the Liberals, the Nationals, the Greens and a growing majority of the community.
"Tillegra is completely unnecessary, expensive and damaging. It will be a $477 million drain on the region's economy," Dr Kaye said.
For more information: John Kaye 0407 195 455
"It has the fourth lowest rate of effluent recycling amongst the 12 large Australian metropolitan supply authorities.
"Instead of squandering money on Tillegra dam or desalination, the Hunter would be much better served by increasing the use of waste water to match national standards. It would be cheaper and better for the environment.
"If Hunter Water matched national best practice, it could boost water security for households and small businesses by taking many industrial consumers off the drinking water supply.
"Hunter Water is more interested in building Tillegra than in boosting its recycling effort.
"By ignoring recycling as a source of water for industrial users, the Corporation is trying to inflate the need for Tillegra.
"Households and the environment are paying for Hunter Water's refusal to look at cheaper and less damaging options," Dr Kaye said.
For more information: John Kaye 0407 195 455
"Hunter Water is treating the state and federal planning processes with complete contempt.
"It is presuming that Tillegra will be approved despite the overwhelming community opposition and the strong case that it is not needed.
"Our legal advice is clear. Hunter Water cannot lawfully charge for a project that is nothing more than a proposal.
"Just because the utility management thinks they have the NSW government hoodwinked about the need for Tillegra, they do not have the legal or moral right to start charging residents for the dam before it is approved.
"The $477 million Upper Hunter dam will need to get through both the state and federal planning processes.
"While the NSW government has an appalling track record of approving its own projects, federal Environment Minister Peter Garrett has already rejected a Queensland dam proposal.
"The promise to return the funds if the dam is rejected is hollow. The money belongs to households not the utility and residents will have been denied access to it for many months," Dr Kaye said.
For more information: John Kaye 0407 195 455
The letters represent the deep-seated and widespread community opposition to the project, according to Greens NSW MP John Kaye.
Dr Kaye said: "The Keneally government should listen to the voice of the Hunter Valley community on the issue of Tillegra Dam.
"These letters make very valid arguments against a project that will lead to increases in household water bills and damage the environment.
"The message for Premier Kristina Keneally and ALP members in the Hunter is that the community is very angry that this project is being foisted upon them.
"In pointing out the many flaws in this project the community is echoing the concerns of the government’s own experts.
"These letters reinforce the case that the Tillegra Dam does not stack up on economic, environmental or scientific grounds and should be abandoned immediately," Dr Kaye said.
For more information: John Kaye 0407 195 455
"The very core of the case for Tillegra has been exposed as defective and misleading.
"By using a flawed and discredited means of comparing the impacts and costs of the dam to the supposed benefits, Hunter Water has biased the case in favour of the dam.
"If the project goes ahead, it will be Hunter households and small businesses that pay the social and economic price for infrastructure that has not been properly assessed.
"Dr Wells has pointed the finger at Hunter Water. They have prejudiced the outcome in favour of the dam, without any concern for the impacts on households, the regional economy and the environment.
"The ball is now in the Keneally government's court.
"Planning Minister Tony Kelly must not accept a 'technically flawed and ethically questionable' approach to weighing up costs and benefits.
"The very least he should do is put the project on hold and commission an independent inquiry to examine the mounting case against Tillegra.
"Dr Wells' critique comes on top of government departments and independent experts questioning everything from the impacts on the Hunter wetlands to the studies used to justify the need for the dam.
"Hunter Water should be put back on the leash before they inflict serious economic, social and environmental damage on the region," Dr Kaye said.
For more information: John Kaye 0407 195 455
"The water supply authority claimed their use of the model confirmed the conclusions of the Environmental Assessment report.
"NSW Office of Water documents obtained by the Greens show that neither of these assertions is true.
"The assertion that the dam would have negligible impact is at best speculative and almost certainly untrue.
"Hunter Water hid from public view the inconvenient truth that the NSW government's own Office of Water had told them that the model needed to be tested and verified before it could be used with any degree of confidence.
"Yet again Hunter Water has been less than open. They have been caught red-handed trying to pass off preliminary results of a modelling study as if they were completely reliable predictions.
"The case for Tillegra Dam is so flawed that its proponent needs to continually deceive the community and the government about its impacts on the environment, the irrigators and the fish and prawn industries.
"The government's Office of Water is calling for the project to be put on hold until there is a more rigorous assessment of its impacts on the Hunter Estuary.
"It is time for the NSW government to ignore the deception coming from Hunter Water and act on the advice of its own experts. To do otherwise would be playing Russian roulette with the future of this important waterway," Dr Kaye said.
For more information: John Kaye 0407 195 455
In its official submission to the Environmental Assessment process, the NSW Office of Water expressed grave concerns for the future of the estuary if Tillegra went ahead.
NOW’s submission, uncovered in an earlier call for papers by the Greens, also indicated that the agency lacked confidence in the modelling used by HWC in the Environmental Assessment Report (EAR) – referred to as the ELCOM model – and that it had commissioned its own study from the specialist company BMT WBM, using their TUFLOW–FV model:
‘The ELCOM model completely ignores the dynamic nature of the salinity characteristics of the estuary. Due to its computational requirements, the ELCOM Model is not suitable for long-term simulation.
‘NOW had commissioned BMT WBM (the same consultants used to develop ELCOM) to model the impact of environmental flow rules from the Hunter River and the cumulative impact of all water sharing plans that impact on the Hunter Estuary.’
The development of this new model was a substantial vote of
no confidence from the NSW government’s own water department in Hunter water’s
impact modelling.
At page 175, the report stated:
‘NSW Office of Water (NOW) investigations: submissions have suggested that a decision regarding the dam should be delayed until the NOW investigations into the freshwater requirements of the wetlands have been completed.’
HWC then dismissed this concern, stating at page 176:
‘Subsequent to the EA the outcomes of additional modelling using the TUFLOW–FV model (also utilised by NOW) to assess long term variability in salinity has confirmed the findings of the EA that the potential impact of Tillegra Dam on the Ramsar wetlands in the lower estuary will be negligible across the range of flows.’
‘Hunter Water are confident that there will be no measurable effect from the changes in freshwater flows to the estuary, due to the construction and operation of Tillegra Dam, on the Ramsar wetland sites of the lower estuary.’
The report goes on to conclude:
‘Based on this assessment, the specific issues 1a to 1h listed above are not considered to be relevant to the Tillegra Dam project.’
NOW’s objection was specific issue 1d.
Emails and other documents uncovered in a March 2010 Greens call for paper revealed that:
¨NOW informed HWC that they were welcome to use the new FV Model but that issues regarding calibration needed to be resolved.
¨Despite NOW’s warnings, HWC recommissioned BMT WBM to use early data from NOW’s FV modelling to report on impacts on the estuary and wetlands in their Tillegra Dam Submissions Report.
¨HWC did not report any of the issues regarding calibration or that the model’s application to the Hunter estuary was still in the early stages of development.
¨HWC admitted in a meeting with NOW on 23 December 2009 that the model they used in the Tillegra Dam Assessment to determine impacts on the Hunter Estuary and Ramsar listed wetlands was unsuitable.
Without systematic calibration, the model is untested and predictions are at best speculative.
What NOW are saying:
Graham Carter, NOW, Tamworth Office, 18 March 2010:
‘The issue is they are presenting unverified and untested data.’
Eddie Harris, senior officer, NOW, 3 March 2010:
‘HWC’s statement “no impacts have been identified that are directly related to the Tillegra Dam” project is incorrect.’
‘We need to stress to HWC the importance of a robust, properly calibrated model for the Hunter Estuary.
‘Because of the time pressures placed on HWC, they have proceeded to model a range of scenarios using the FM model. NOW officers are currently reviewing this report. It is expected this review will be complete by?? and will highlight the uncertainty associated with finalisation of the calibration.
‘If we get this wrong there will be third party impacts and major environmental consequences.’
‘The estuary model in its current form can only give an indication of impact…the model is still at an early stage of development
‘The model will eventually help set the ecologically sustainable extraction limit for the entire Hunter Valley based on the cumulative extraction across the valley
‘If we are not careful in determining the flow rules …we may well be placed in a situation of reducing usage to other Hunter Valley users in the future.’
Mark Simons, senior officer, NOW, 23 February 2010:
‘Any assessment of the impact of the Tillegra Dam needs to include an assessment of the cumulative impact of the storages and extraction within the valley.
‘It is unclear why the tidal pool spells analysis has not been used for assessment of impacts at the Ramsar Wetlands. As the wetlands primarily respond to environmental triggers, the frequency and duration of events, and the duration between events, is considered critical to any assessment of environmental impact.
‘The construction of
Tillegra has the potential to increase the level of impact of this structure,
by removing a further proportion of the high flows.’
Greens NSW MP John Kaye
Dr Kaye said: "Hunter Water has grossly misled the Department of Planning and the public over its modelling of the impacts of Tillegra Dam on the estuary and internationally recognised wetlands.
Instead of being honest and saying that the analysis was in
its early stages of development, Hunter Water publicly told Planning Minister
Tony Kelly that they were ‘confident’ that there would be no measurable effect.
The water supply authority claimed their use of the model confirmed the
conclusions of the Environmental Assessment report.
“Neither of these assertions is true.
“The assertion that the dam would have negligible impact is at best speculative and almost certainly untrue.
“Hunter Water hid from public view the inconvenient truth that the NSW government’s own Office of Water had told them that the model needed calibration before it could be used with any degree of confidence.
“Yet again Hunter Water has been less than open. They have been caught red-handed trying to pass off preliminary results of a modelling study as if they were completely reliable predictions.
“The case for Tillegra Dam is so flawed that its proponent needs to continually deceive the community and the government about its impacts on the environment, the irrigators and the fish and prawn industries.
“The government’s Office of Water is calling for the project to be put on hold until there is a more rigorous assessment of its impacts on the Hunter Estuary. It is time for the NSW government to ignore the deception coming from Hunter Water and act on the advice of its own experts. To do otherwise would be playing Russian roulette with the future of this important waterway.
“Hunter Water is trying to hide the impacts on the Estuary of taking away 60 billion litres of fresh water a year. In order to maintain the myth that the environment and the industries that depend on it will not suffer, the state-owned corporation is deceiving the government and the community, Dr Kaye said.
For more information: John Kaye 0407 195 455
No Tillegra Dam spokesperson, Sally Corbett
Ms Corbett said: “This is yet another example of an arrogant, out of control monopoly water authority. Hunter Water Corporation has consistently misled the Hunter community in its desperation to build the Tillegra Dam.
“The Hunter community can now clearly see that Hunter Water has manipulated data for its own purposes. It appears desperate to get an approval from the Department of Planning at any cost.”
“Hunter Water is irresponsibly playing with public money.
“It is time the Keneally government brought this Corporation to account. There is no credibility left to this so called planning process. There must be an independent inquiry set up right now to restore “merit” to the process,” Ms Corbett said.
For more information: Sally Corbett 0403 892 093
]]>"Instead they continue to fall back on the same old tired excuses they have
been churning out for the past three years.
"Hunter Water persists in its reliance on unrealistic drought risks. The
response has again failed to account for the use of water restrictions and
demand management to cope with any future short term pressure on supplies.
"The utility is trying to create panic over water shortages to justify
building their favourite project.
"A series of 'commitments' such as a possible national park and water
releases are nothing new. Hunter Water has packaged up its legal and
administrative obligations as concessions.
"The promise of 2.5 billion litres of water released into the Williams River
does not disguise the harsh reality that Tillegra would take flows of 60
billion litres a year from the Williams and Hunter River and the estuary.
"The re-engineering of Seaham Weir was always necessary and will do little
to keep the estuary and lower Hunter River alive.
"The community will not be panicked into accepting this dam and the Keneally
government should join them in rejecting the excuses and concessions.
"Hunter Water has broken faith with its obligation to serve its community.
It has reverted to being an old-fashioned engineering-dominated bureaucracy
with a 'build at any cost' mentality.
"The response to submissions is misleading and dismissive. The Keneally
government should reject the dam," Dr Kaye said.
For more information: John Kaye 0407 195 455
]]>Five months later the official submissions of four NSW government agencies to the environmental assessment for Tillegra dam warned of massive damage to the same Hunter wetlands and estuary if the $477 million project proceeded.
Minister Garrett has the has the final say on Tillegra. He declared the project a controlled action under federal environment legislation, specifically because of its potential impacts on the Hunter Wetlands.
Having recognised the importance of the wetlands and funded their repair, the federal minister would be flying in the face of the official evidence presented to him by key NSW government agencies if he fails to stop the dam.
‘Caring for our country’ grant
The Federal Government identified the Hunter Wetlands as one of 13 coastal hotspots throughout Australia worth preserving.
Coastal Hotspots are described as, “a coastal aquatic ecosystem:
In June 2009, the Hunter-Central Rivers Catchment Management Authority (CMA) was awarded $1.47 million as part of the Australian government’s $455 million Caring for our Country 2010/11 project grants[1].
The work is described on the Rudd government’s Natural Resource management page as[2]:
“The Hunter Coastal Hotspot and Ramsar[3] Improvement Project
The Hunter Estuary is a valuable estuary for fish birds, wetlands and other ecological services. It faces many challenges including being highly modified, industrialised and populated. This project has been tailored to improve the estuary through activities specifically addressing the Caring for our Country business plan. This project includes 8 integrated components: Improving Ramsar and other wetlands through rehabilitation. Improving riparian habitat through repair. Reducing acid sulfate soil impacts through drain modification and grazing management. Improving soil carbon management through education and sustainable grazing. Improving the management of Alligator weed through strategic management. Improving the condition and extent of EPBC-listed communities and species.
Local Federal Labor MP Sharon Grierson also announced the grant in a July 2009 media release[4].
The Hunter-Central Rivers Catchment Management Authority (CMA) is the local Natural Resource Management (NRM) organisation responsible for coordinating the Federal grant.
Tillegra dam is a “significant threat” to the Hunter Estuary: NSW govt agencies
Four government agencies officially raised major concerns about the impacts of Tillegra on the Hunter Estuary and Wetlands. Submissions to the Environmental Assessment Report from:
Criticisms from these departments included:
The NSW Department of Industry and Investment’s submission suggested that Tillegra dam would pose:
The November 2009 submission also raised the spectre of compensation for financial losses that would be suffered by fishers and prawners.
The CMA which is administering Minister Garrett’s grant said in their submission that:
“The dam will take all of the high level flows from the Williams River which is a key driver of carbon cycling for the estuary. The CMA disagrees with the assessment that this impact will not be significant. This impact effects productivity within the estuary. HWC should aim to support offsetting the impact of the dam by repairing the connectivity of flood plain wetlands to the estuary such as Irrawang Swamp.
“The estuary processes such as nutrient carbon cycling which determine the condition and therefore Ramsar values of the site are dependent on flood flows. The CMA therefore believes that the impacts may be underestimated by the use of average flows.
“The CMA suggests that the impact on the estuary has been underestimated and that no offsetting or mitigation has been considered. The CMA recommends that additional assessment of the estuary impacts be undertaken and peer reviewed and a offsetting package to include the rehabilitation of Irrawang Swamp be included.”
The NOW said in their submission that:
“Whilst NOW concur with the assessment findings for the specific sites investigated, there are concerns that the EA is unintentionally misleading with inferences that the assessment findings for the specific sites can be extrapolated to other parts of the estuary. The Ramsar Wetland assessment also significantly understates the inflow contribution the Williams River provides to the Hunter estuary.”
“The independent assessment infers that the Williams River is a minor contributor of river inflows to the Hunter Estuary. This inference is not only incorrect, but under certain climactic conditions the Williams River may be the primary contributor of river inflows to the Hunter Estuary. The existing cumulative impacts of Chichester, Seaham Weir and Grahamstown Extractions will be increased by the construction of Tillegra Dam…… This amounts to a cumulative annual reduction in flows of 36% from the Williams River System.”
“The environmental assessment for the project includes estuary wide statements. These statements are not supported by the analysis presented in the Appendix of the report (BMT WBM Technical Report) or by other studies that have been undertaken in the Hunter Estuary.”
“ The Department is not confident that the supporting information provided for the Project is adequate to frame environment flow provisions for Seaham Weir or Tillegra Dam. Future investigations in the context of the relative contributions of the Hunter River and the Williams River to the estuary are required to ensure there is not redistribution of water away from essential service industries in the Upper Hunter and that the Ramsar wetlands are protected.”
Comments:
Greens NSW MP Dr John Kaye
Dr Kaye said, “Federal Environment Minister Peter Garrett has already recognised that these wetlands are both important and at risk. He has been officially told by four key NSW government agencies that Tillegra would undermine their recovery.
“If he fails to reject the dam, he will have to admits that he wasted $1.47 million of taxpayers money.
“Federal Environment Minister Peter Garrett has little choice but to reject Tillegra dam.
“Having spent $1.47 million on repairing and protecting the Hunter wetlands in recognition of their importance and vulnerability, he can hardly turn around and ignore the advice that Tillegra would devastate them.
“The anger of the Catchment Management Authority is understandable. One level of government funds them to repair the wetlands, while another is pushing a project that will destroy them.
For more information: John Kaye 0407 195 455
Brad Warren, Executive Chair, Ocean Watch Australia
Mr Warren said: “OceanWatch Australia has grave concerns regarding the impacts on the aquatic and estuarine environments of the Hunter and Williams River systems that the development of the Tillegra Dam would create.’
“It seems contradictory to good management to have the Australian Government targeting funding for projects within the Hunter Estuary, an area they have identified as having high ecological, social, cultural and/ or recreational values, while the NSW Government is considering increasing the stress on the natural system by damming the Williams River.’
“Development of the Tillegra Dam project would be at odds with the local community’s desire to see a healthy and productive natural system, as well as attempts by all levels of government over a number of years to facilitate those desires and expectations into reality. It would have a major impact on the ecosystem services provided by the Hunter River Estuary and the adjacent marine environment,” Mr Warren said.
(Full letters to Premier Keneally and Peter Garrrett, Minister for the Environment, Heritage and the Arts are available under separate cover)
For more information: Brad Warren 0412 606 959
Note: OceanWatch Australia Ltd is a national, not for profit company that works to achieve sustainability in the Australian seafood industry by protecting and enhancing fish habitats, improving water quality and advancing the sustainability of fisheries.
_____________________________________
[1] Caring for
our country is a Rudd government
initiative aimed at improving the sustainable management of Australia’s natural
resources, recognising the threats to the environment from climate change and
human activity. It is jointly administered by Environment and Primary Industry.
More details are available at:
www.nrm.gov.au/business-plan/10-11/pubs/business-plan-2010-11.pdf
[2] http://www.nrm.gov.au/business-plan/funded/09/competitive/success-nsw.html
[3] The Ramsar Convention, is an intergovernmental treaty that provides the framework for national action and international cooperation for the conservation and wise use of wetlands and their resources. The convention dates from 1971 and Australia is a signatory nation. http://www.ramsar.org/
[4]
http://www.sharongrierson.com/SharonGrierson/Resources/090702%20HCRCMA_Funding.pdf