"Water restrictions eased"

Discussion in 'Planting, growing, nurturing Plants' started by ecodharmamark, Sep 16, 2007.

  1. ecodharmamark

    ecodharmamark Junior Member

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    G'day All :)

    The following was lifted straight off our local rag's website (source: https://www.bendigoweekly.com/articles/4 ... Page1.html).

    The comment by "Permie" may be of special interest to you.

    Cheerio, Mark.




    WATER RESTRICTIONS EASED

    By Anthony Radford
    WATER

    BENDIGO residents will be able to water their gardens within weeks.

    Coliban Water this afternoon announced a slight relaxation of its harsh stage four urban restrictions, allowing residents to water their gardens for two hours each week.

    The water corporation also announced a rural water allocation of 30 per cent, which should be enough to see summer sport flourish this year.

    Coliban managing director Geoff Michell said with the introduction of the Goulburn to Lake Eppalock pipeline and the recycled pipeline had led to the decisions.

    "These decisions have not been made lightly and we believe that we have enough water available to take this small step for both our rural and urban customers," he said.

    Under the new plan, residents of Bendigo, Heathcote, Castlemaine and Kyneton will be allowed to water garden areas using a hand-held hose, bucket or watering can for up to two hours each week on specified days between 7pm and 8pm only.

    Odd numbered properties will water for one hour a day on Sundays and Wednesdays and even and un-numbered properties can water on Saturdays and Tuesdays.

    No watering is permitted on Mondays, Thursdays or Fridays.

    "There is a long road ahead to build our water security and our water situation is still serious, but this is a small step to provide some relief," he said.

    "We encourage people to continue to use their grey water and rainwater and to only make use of the general exemption if they really need to.

    "Water for this year’s rural season and the urban general exemption is being provided due to reasonable inflows into our storages early in the season, and because we have the added security of the Goldfields Superpipe and the Bendigo Recycled Water Project."

    Mr Michell first raised the possibility of the easing of restrictions in the Bendigo Weekly four weeks ago.

    "It is possible if we get reasonable inflows in the next six to eight weeks," he said in the August 17 Weekly.

    Today, he said the Coliban system’s water position was better than at this time last year and by June next it would be better than it was in June this year.

    Coliban Water has 22,444 megalitres in storage which is 16.5 per cent of the total capacity of the system.

    On top of that, 10,000ML of water will be pumped through the Goulburn pipeline this year.

    "Based on historical usage patterns our estimate is that this year’s rural allocation will use an estimated 4000 ML of water and the urban general exemption will add a further estimated 2000ML to consumption between October and April next year," he said.

    Mr Michell said it was unlikely that the rural allocation would exceed 30 per cent unless rain resulted in significant inflows into storages.

    "We have an enormous amount of work to do to prepare for the rural season to ensure water is delivered in the most efficient way we can."

    Mr Michell said the corporation expected a positive reaction from both urban and rural customers and expected the majority of customers would trust and welcome today’s announcements.

    [email protected]

    Comments

    Comment #1 (Posted by Ned)

    Farmers in the irrigation districts are really doing it tough again this year- and Bendigo is easing restrictions. How rude and arrogent. Former Bendigo Resident.

    Comment #2 (Posted by robbo)

    i wonder how long we will be useing bendigos water for before bendigos supply of water dris up ?.?we as people in bendigo need to know that our water supply is going to be LONG TERM??????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????

    Comment #3 (Posted by robbo)

    HOW LONG IS OUR WATER SUPPLY GOING 2 LAST US AS FARMERS OF BENDIGO IS BENDIGO WATER SUPPLY CO: JUST PULLING OUR 4th LEG OR IS IT GOING TO BE LONG TERM FOR THE SAKE OF OUR KIDS AND OUR FARMERS I HOPE AS A GOING TO BE DADDY NEXT YEAR.????. PS. TO PEOPLE OF BENDIGO I HOPE IT IS NO ANOTHER JOHNNY HOWERD OR MR SHEEN

    Comment #4 (Posted by robbo)

    johnny howerd or mr sheen stunt.??????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????

    Comment #5 (Posted by Permie)

    By committing itself to an easing of water restrictions (taking effect from 1 October), Coliban Water has recognised the importance of supplying water to its residential customers.

    Coliban's "Stage 4 - With General Exemption" rule will soon allow people to water their home-based food-production gardens. People who rely on home-produced fruit and vegetables to supplement their weekly food requirements will soon be able to save their precious, and sustainably-collected rainwater for other uses, such as home-based revegetation/landscape projects, etc.

    Growing food at home makes a lot of ecological, social and economic sense:

    1) People are able to harvest food directly from their own gardens and thus save on the enormous costs associated with purchasing food that is embodied with a million 'food miles'.

    2) People have the means to produce their own food, and thus know exactly what has gone into the process of growing it.

    3) Home-produced food provides people - especially children - with the opportunity to get out into their own family garden and engage in an activity that teaches the importance of remaining physically connected with the soil that feeds us, and billions of other life-sustaining biota.

    4) Operating a home-based food production system (for example: one that has been designed according to the principles of permaculture) can teach the home-gardener many new skills in the conservation of water (for example: mulching, rainwater harvesting, composting, etc.).

    Thanks to Coliban Water's decision to 'turn the taps back on', fruit and vegetable home-gardeners all over the region will soon, once again, be able to produce their own food.
     
  2. TropicalRose

    TropicalRose Junior Member

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    Good comment from Permie. I can't imagine what you guys were going through before if this is considered an 'easing' of restrictions.
     
  3. Michaelangelica

    Michaelangelica Junior Member

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    Re: "Water restrictions eased"

    This old thread mentions food miles. (my emphasis).
    viewtopic.php?f=6&t=10038&p=49362&hilit=food+miles#p49362

    Here the restrictions just get tougher.
    Still the council is opening up more land for houses .
    I guess they have no backyards so they won't need water to grow anything- except fungus between their third and forth toe..
     
  4. Phil Hansen

    Phil Hansen Junior Member

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    Re: "Water restrictions eased"

    If you rely soley on legal townwater supplies, ie. have no tanks (hasn't rained here since early December anyway!!!) watering for one hour four days apart does not support a home based production system. I have developed a biological greywater filtration system, that allows some watering of fruit trees. They aren't exactly thriving or fruiting, but rather just hanging in there. As veggies are shallow rooted, they need water most days in summer, which is not supportrd by the 'easing' of restrictions. Unfortunatley, most people living in the Coliban system are forced to purchace million mile foods, which we know uses up to 100 times the water a backyard system uses.
    Phil
     

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