A report to Cobar Shire’s Ordinary Council Meeting tomorrow will recommend that council doesn’t extend the town water supply to include O’Neill Road residents.
The report, compiled by council’s water and sewer manager Eric Poga, comes after much debate has been waged on the matter by councillors for more than three years.
In his report, Mr Poga has used the findings of a recent network analysis conducted by NSW Public Works and cited prohibitive costs and an unfair disadvantage to other property owners as reasons for recommending that the existing town water main not be extended to include the O’Neill Road subdivision.
“Connection of the O’Neill Road properties would require the construction of 2,650m of 100mm UPVC pipeline at an estimated cost of $251,750 using the NSW Government reference rate of $95/m for 100mm pipelines.
“The Australian Standards for town water supply networks specify a minimum pipe diameter of 100mm,” Mr Poga said.
He said the cost would need to be shared by the property owners i.e. approximately $63,000 per property.
“Should the properties be connected to town water the properties would be required to have storage tanks with pressure pumps connected to ensure acceptable minimum water pressures.
“The storage tanks would also be required to ensure instantaneous demands can be met as the properties may be subject to fluctuating availability in peak demand periods as they are at the furthest end of the town network.
“To fund all or part of the cost from the water fund would unfairly disadvantage the property owners in the Shire who have paid the full cost of connections as was the case in the Lerida Road subdivision,” Mr Poga said.
“As previously reported to Council the developer of the O’Neill Road subdivision did not request connection to town water when the subdivision was undertaken and, under NSW planning law, Council could not require the new lots to be connected to town water as they are outside the water supply area.”
