Member for New England Barnaby Joyce announced the federal government’s election commitment for the next stage of the Liverpool Plains shire council’s water project, which could see improvements including a nine-megalitre-a-day water treatment plant, raw water pump station augmentation and a treated water pump station in the shire.

The announcement was made at Quipolly Dam, north of Quirindi yesterday afternoon with mayor Andrew Hope overjoyed that after 10-years of planning the project, it would get the green light.

Also included in the project is a new water main and reservoir to Werris Creek and a new main from the water treatment plant to Quirindi.

The $27 million needed to fully fund the project is more than half raised with the council also successfully obtaining a $7 million intergenerational loan, repayable over the next 30 years. Cr Hope said council had also made submissions to the state government for the remaining $10 million.

“Its an historical event for our shire,” Cr Hope said.

“It’ll give us some capacity, it’ll allow us to develop some housing estates and industrial land in Werris Creek and will allow our dam to be recreational.

“It’s been years in the workings by the council and successive councils to get this project to where it is today.

“What it will do for the Werris Creek community and the ability for it now to develop because the infrastructure is there, it is beyond words.

“That community has been struggling for many, many years with the capacity to develop and this project should give them the capacity.

“It’s also now linked to Willow Tree, so effectively, by finishing this project we have drought-proofed the three biggest towns in our shire (Quirindi, Werris Creek and Willow Tree).”

Mr Joyce described the project as a “substantial augmentation upgrade”

“This money that we put on the table will allow the capacity for further water treatment, for the upgrade of the piping facility to Werris Creek,” he said.

“It will allow the construction of a small reservoir at Werris Creek and to create that infrastructure network that has been asked for by this council for over a decade.

“I made a promise when I came back home that we would put our shoulder to the wheel and get this problem fixed.

“It is a great day because we have the capacity, to put on the table of an election commitment of $10 million to do precisely that.”

Mr Joyce said further funding announcements would be made in the coming weeks as the July federal election looms.