Anger over mothballing

Advocates’ uproar over Nullinga Dam outcome

NULLINGA Dam proponents are fired up at the ditching of the Atherton Tableland water storage facility and say the stalling of the project will set back growth in the Far Northern agricultural industry 30 years.

The State Government said the final detailed business case recommended that the proposed dam not go ahead and “alternative water supply options for the Far North” will now be investigated.

Advance Cairns chief executive officer Nick Trompf was disappointed at the decision.

He said demand on water contained in the Tinaroo Dam continued to grow and already the cost to the farmer, at more than $3000 per megalitre, is 15 times more expensive when compared to water from the Burdekin Dam.

“We are now facing a story of great agricultural growth is going to come to a grinding halt because it’s unaffordable to buy water,” he said.

Natural Resources Minister Dr Anthony Lynham said he had shared outcome of the Building Queensland business case with local political leaders.

“I called mayors Bob Manning and Tom Gilmore as well as the three local members of parliament to advise them of today’s publication and the government’s plan to protect the proposed dam site for the future and to continue to seek alternative affordable water for farmers,” he said yesterday.

Cairns Mayor Bob Manning accused the State Government of “white-anting” the Nullinga Dam project, which he said was critical to developing high value agricultural crops on the Atherton Tablelands.

“This has been dragging on forever and a day and we need Federal and State Governments to sit down and conclude an outcome,” he said.

LNP Shadow Minister for Natural Resources Dale Last accused the Premier of “blatantly treating regional Queenslanders like secondclass citizens”.

“Annastacia Palaszczuk’s priorities are all wrong, Cross River Rail has blown out by more than $1 billion but Labor can’t find a cent for Nullinga Dam,” he said.