The Gippsland White Elephant?
The Gippsland Water Factory is being built to treat and recycle water for industrial use at a cost of $200 million. About 70% of the water to be recycled is planned to come from PaperlinX pulp and paper factory and be reused by them as well. But AP’s PaperlinX has had its water rates frozen for five years, meaning … the good citizens of Gippsland will be paying for the company’s water recycling and use. But it gets worse…
Now that PaperlinX is looking financially unviable and can’t find a buyer, will the average water customer be paying for a white elephant? The state will pay $50 million, leaving domestic water users to cover the rest through a 100% increase in their charges over the next five years. The Feds had given $150 million for Ballarat’s new water infrastructure but ex-Nationals MP Peter McGauran wasn’t able to get a cent from them for this one.