About the Project

Liverpool Plains Shire Council, in collaboration with Federal and NSW governments, have built a new state-of-the-art water treatment plant at Quipolly. The plant will treat water from Quipolly Dam and via the new pipeline will supply water to the Werris Creek and Quirindi communities.

What stage is the project up to?

The plant’s commissioning phase is now complete and we’re excited that it is now at a stage where treated water can be released to the general public. However, due to high algae levels in the dam at present, our water team will continue testing the quality of the water produced to make sure the water is safe to provide to the community for drinking.

The plant has been designed to treat water from the dam. The water in the dam can vary in quality over the year due to changes in temperature and other natural process such as algae growth. The treatment plant includes several treatment processes that are used to remove various contaminants from the water such as particles and algae and make it safe to drink.

Once the water produced from the new plant meets the requirements of the Australian Drinking Water Guidelines Australian Drinking Water Guidelines | NHMRC and the NSW Health Requirements Drinking Water - Water quality, batch releases of water from plant will be released for public consumption.

When this happens, customers may receive water from the new plant or a mix of water from the old and new plant during the next month.

During this time customers may notice changes in the water such as a different colour or smell compared to the water produced from the current plant.

Project Overview

The Quipolly Water Treatment Plant, and the Werris Creek and Quirindi Water Pipeline is the final stage of Liverpool Plains Shire Council’s (LPSC) long-term vision, known as the Regional Water Supply Strategy.

This Strategy was initiated to ensure a quality water supply for the region into the future.

Council has worked closely with the Federal and State Governments to attract funding of $25 million for this project. It is estimated that the project will cost around $32.4 million with Council making a contribution of up to around $7.4 million to complete the project.

What construction is involved?

The construction stage of the project is now complete. It has involved construction of:

A state-of-the-art water treatment plant near Quipolly Dam
A treated water pipeline from Quipolly Dam to Werris Creek and Quirindi
A new water reservoir in Werris Creek
Upgraded Dam Intake valves
Destratification system in Quipolly Dam.

The water treatment plant was constructed near Quipolly Dam. The alignment of the pipeline has largely be constructed on public owned land.

Who is funding the project?

As previously noted Council has attracted funding of $15 million from the Federal Government, made up of Community Development Grant (CDG) fund and Building Better Regions (BBR) grant, and $10 million from the NSW Government (Safe and Secure Water Program) for this project. Council will need to make a contribution of around $7.4 million, with the total cost of the project estimated to be $32.4 million.