That is, the decades-long battle to have Chaffey Dam upgraded from 62 gigalitres to 100 gigalitres.

A remarkable window of opportunity opened for this project almost a decade ago when major flooding identified the need for a safety upgrade at the dam.

It was quickly realised that if a capacity increase was carried out at the same time as the safety work, massive savings would be achieved.

Making the dam bigger would benefit all Peel Valley water users from irrigators right through to homeowners and major industrial concerns.

The Federal Government has given provisional financial support to the work on the clear understanding a water sharing plan is put in place.

Under the timeline set by Penny Wong, that has to be done by the end of the year. While the dam capacity upgrade is not guaranteed – it is still subject to approval from a range of government bodies – it certainly won’t go ahead without a water sharing plan.

It is for this reason that we believe all parties should make a concerted effort to sign off on such an agreement at the earliest possible opportunity.

There has been a call for an extension of the date by which submissions have to be lodged.

The question that needs to be asked is, just what impact individual submissions – as opposed to those lodged by irrigator associations – are going to have on the shape of the final agreement.

The answer to that question then needs to be balanced against the risk of closing the door on Tamworth’s future water security.

Is it worth it?