May 21, 2018
The South Burnett Regional Council will call tenders later this month for two new recycled water plants in Wondai and Murgon to improve water safety in both towns.
Water and Waste Water portfolio chair Cr Roz Frohloff said the new plants will allow water used for the irrigation of sports fields in both towns to be upgraded to meet modern safety standards.
The main beneficiaries of the new recycled water plants are expected to be the Wondai Sportsgrounds and the Murgon Golf Club.
Class A recycled water is now used on Kingaroy’s sporting fields following the commissioning of the town’s new Wastewater Treatment Plant in 2016.
The recycled water is being supplied to the Kingaroy Golf Club and sports clubs that use the Bjelke-Petersen Recreation Area at a lower rate than town water.
But at present, both the Wondai Sportsgrounds and the Murgon Golf Club use water treated to a lower standard for maintaining their grounds through arrangements both groups struck with the former Wondai and Murgon Shire Councils many years ago.
This low-grade water could pose potential health risks to club members if it were inappropriately handled.
Both clubs say they take sensible precautions to ensure this doesn’t happen, but the new recycled water plants will eliminate the possibility entirely.
However, the improvements to community water safety will come at a cost.
While the water the Murgon Golf Club currently use on their greens costs nothing, the new recycled water is expected to increase the club’s overheads by up to $6000 a year.
The Wondai rugby league club have also been in discussions with the Council about the new recycled water arrangements, and expect it will increase their operating costs as well.
Wondai Wolves Rugby League president Dudley Dobson told southburnett.com.au discussions had been “on the table” with the Council for at least the past 8-9 months.
While final costings won’t be worked out until the Council accepts a tender and finds out what the new water plant costs to run, the club expects it will need to raise extra money to cover it.
“We understand the cost will be lower than town water, but just how much lower will have to wait until the Council finds out what costs it will face,” Dudley said.
“After this, we’re going to have to work out how we can find the funds.”
Dudley said he hoped the Council will take the same view it recently announced it will take with other community groups, and phase in the new water charges over several years.
“We’re only a small club, and our membership fees are lowest of any rugby league club because of Wondai’s demographics,” Dudley said.
“We only have limited opportunities to raise funds, and so do the five other groups that use the sportsgrounds or hire it out.”
Dudley said he found the Council was listening to the club’s concerns, and was hopeful an arrangement could be struck that didn’t impose undue hardship on any of Wondai’s sports clubs.
“We’ve had a lift in player numbers in the juniors and the seniors this year after a slow start,” Dudley said.
“The concern is that if we have to lift our membership fees, what effect will this have on sign-ups?
“If we price ourselves out of the junior market, this leaves kids with nothing to do and puts the future of the sport in jeopardy.
“No-one wants that.”
