In the Hunter region, water management activities are guided by the Greater Hunter Regional Water Strategy. This strategy identifies infrastructure and policy-based solutions. Additionally, the Lower Hunter Water Security Plan outlines a set of actions for management of water supply and demand for the lower Hunter.
Over the reporting period, strategic activities focussed on work to improve our understanding of inter-system connectivity.
Final Business Cases (FBC) were developed for the Lostock Dam to Glennies Creek Dam pipeline and the Paterson River Connection before being integrated to form a joint FBC.
The proposed pipeline between Lostock Dam to Glennies Creek Dam would allow higher rainfall water in the eastern catchments to be transferred to larger storages in the west. While the Patterson River Connection project seeks to provide an additional offtake and water treatment facility along the Patterson River.
The NSW Government decided to defer building these projects as they are not necessary for the immediate water security of the Hunter region. The FBC has provided critical groundwork if the project is revisited in the future.
See the Monitoring, evaluation and reporting on the Lower Hunter Water Security Plan annual report and progress update.