FORMER Leeton resident Ron Pike has announced he will push a bold move through parliament should he be elected in tomorrow’s state election.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
Earlier this year Mr Pike resigned from the National Party to contest a seat in the Legislative Council.
He said if elected on Saturday he would immediately push for the Lake Coolah project to go ahead, with a few minor changes to the current plan, as well as the creation of a new water storage facility site just outside of Leeton.
Mr Pike has researched and investigated the possibility of creating a water storage on Brobenah Road towards the aerodrome that could be named the “Stony Point Lake”.
The idea is for the six square kilometre area to hold about 450,000 megalitres that would have a depth of 7.5 metres and a 15 metre wall. Water would be diverted from Lake Coolah and through the main canal.
The proposed site is mostly on land owned by the Puntoriero family, with Mr Pike already running the idea past them.
The project would be aligned with Lake Coolah, as well as helping to divert flood water from areas such as Yenda via the Mirool Creek. The project would cost about $400 million.
“That is a number I have estimated it to be at, but the benefit would be 10-fold,” Mr Pike said.
“The government would get their money back in a number of years. What this does is create a permanent water site for use by irrigators, but the other thing it would benefit is tourism. You could have boats out there, cabins … the possibilities are endless.”
Mr Pike presented the plan on Wednesday to Leeton Shire Council mayor Paul Maytom, independent candidate for Murray Helen Dalton and Murrumbidgee Valley Food and Fibre Association president Debbie Buller.
Councillor Maytom said the idea seemed plausible at face value.
He said further discussions would be needed with those working on the Lake Coolah storage project.
Mr Pike said the site to the north of Leeton was ideal.
“It’s definitely doable,” he said.
“All we would be doing is capturing the water and storing it for use later on.”