Sarah Marrett emailed Ms Keneally on February 24, saying Barraba was in crisis, and asking for the State Government to fund a one-third share of the expected $22 million cost for a pipeline from Split Rock Dam to Barraba.

Council has set aside $9 million for it, and the Federal Government has given a financial commitment to the proposed pipeline, with only the State Government dragging the chain.

“Barraba is a wonderful community. However, without a secure and sustainable water supply, this town will die,” Ms Marrett wrote.

She sent a similar letter to Prime Minister Kevin Rudd, federal parliamentary secretary for water Mike Kelly, Tamworth-based The Nationals MLC Trevor Khan, Tamworth MP Peter Draper, New England MP Tony Windsor and federal Water Minister Penny Wong.

So far she’s heard back from Mr Draper and Mr Kelly, acknowledging their receipt of the letter, and is hoping to receive a response.

“We need to keep pushing it ... keep it going and keep the pressure on the pollies,” Ms Marrett, who is also a member of the Barraba Community Development Committee, said.

“We’ve had support from the Opposition.”

She said the town, along with much of NSW, had been in drought for a long time and was relying on an unreliable water source in the form of emergency bores.

The bores can supply up to 400 kilolitres of water per day, two-thirds of Barraba’s water usage, but cause disruption to nearby bores.

To address this issue, council recently decided to pump from only one of the bores. Barraba is on level three water restrictions.

“Four hundred kilolitres of water per day is not a sustainable amount of water and Barraba cannot survive on this amount of water, and (has) no scope for new business and future growth,” she wrote.