Jason Cahill, Brisbane
In the wake of his government's messy handling of Queensland's health-care crisis, Labor Premier Peter Beattie, who faces a state election on September 9, has been very keen to divert attention onto his plans for "drought proofing" the state's drought-hit south-east.
Seemingly not a day has passed in the past few months when the issue of water hasn't made local headlines. Brisbane's dams are currently sitting at under 28% of capacity and it has been at least 300 days since more than 55 millimetres of rain — the amount needed to raise dam levels. — has fallen in the catchments,
After Beattie threatened to impose a state of emergency to take control of the south-east's water resources, all mayors in the region agreed on August 8 to his plan for a water grid linking dams, pipelines and proposed desalination plants, as well as a plan for fixing leaking pipes and finding ways for power stations to use alternatives to drinking water.
Last month Beattie signalled he would schedule a referendum on the use of treated effluent for drinking water to coincide with local government elections in 2008. However, the councils have since persuaded him to bring it forward to coincide with next year's federal election.
There has been much debate and criticism about holding a referendum in light of Toowoomba's July 29 referendum in which almost 62% of residents voted against treated effluent being added to existing fresh water supplies.
However, since this vote some surveys have suggested that as many as 60% of residents in Queensland's major metropolitan areas of the Gold Coast, Brisbane and the Sunshine Coast would support the adding of recycled effluent to drinking water.
Queensland's opposition leader, the National Party's Lawrence Springborg, has come out against water recycling altogether, claiming that the hormones in recycled water would lead to "the feminisation of fish" and the changing of gender for other species.
Others have claimed that properly treated effluent could actually be cleaner than what presently comes out of household taps.
The main source of Beattie's consternation remains the issue of his intention to go ahead with a dam at Traverston in the Mary River Valley near Gympie. Large protests by residents and hostile local media have not deterred Beattie from ploughing ahead with this plan, under which 500 residents will lose their properties.
A further 400 properties will be taken if, as expected, the second stage of the plan is approved.
Residents claim that there has been no public consultation, that the government has disregarded its own environmental findings and that enormous technical issues are yet to be overcome.
A large waste dump will also need to be built at a nearby quarry in Traverston to store ripped-up pieces of highway, cattle dips and septic tanks and other highly toxic material, leaving a long legacy of environmental troubles.
Mayors and officials from eight local councils directly affected by the projected dam and representing 500,000 residents agreed on August 11 to jointly employ a professional water resource consultant — at a cost of $125,000 — to research alternatives.