Typically, higher state subsidies have been provided to smaller and more remote Councils who lack the customer base to self-fund the necessary infrastructure.
Since 2009, as a result of the global financial crisis, Local Government Water Service providers have had to fund water and wastewater operations and infrastructure from the general and water rates via increasing debt or through a state grant system which has focused on other policy priorities (i.e. economic development, jobs generation).

Over the past 10 years higher standards for drinking water and increasing community requirements for environmental protection have continued to add both capital and operating costs for water service providers.

Since 2011, the industry has been raising concerns about an impending infrastructure cliff and the financial sustainability of small local government water service providers to fund essential services for their communities as assets reach the end of their design life.

In 23-24, Queensland Water Minister Glen Butcher announced the implementation of a Statewide Urban Water Risk Assessment (UWRA).

The UWRA will work with Local Government Water Service Providers across the State to review key risks including drinking water quality, water security, industry skills and resourcing and sustainability of the infrastructure base.

Minister Butcher has indicated that the UWRA will inform advice to Government regarding appropriate long-term responses from the State Government to ensure that Queensland communities are able to access high quality water and wastewater services.

The Queensland Regional Water Alliance Program (QWRAP) provides support to regional Local Government Water Service Providers to collaborate on a regional scale to better manage water and wastewater services and infrastructure.

QWRAP is a joint initiative developed by qldwater (a membership body for water service providers in Queensland), the Local Government Association of Queensland (LGAQ) and the Queensland Government.

There are nine QWRAP regions which represent 57 Local Governments throughout Queensland.

To support water service providers, QWRAP provides funds to employ a regional coordinator and provides small grants to facilitate the development of joint or collaborative approaches.
The South West Queensland Water and Sewerage Alliance (SWQWSA) was established as a QWRAP region in 2021, comprising the Shire Councils of Balonne, Bulloo, Murweh, Paroo and Quilpie Shire Councils and Maranoa Regional Council.

The SWQWSA Councils cover a total land area of 319,261 km2, or 18.5% of Queensland, but their combined population of approximately 24,000 accounts for less than 0.5% of the State total.

The Councils provide potable water services to 26 communities with a total of 10,545 connections, non-potable water services comprising 1,157 connections to 2 communities, one of which does not receive a potable supply, and sewerage services to 14 communities, with 8,109 connections in total.

The largest potable water scheme serves 3,539 connections, and the smallest only 14, and the largest sewerage scheme 3,083 connections and the smallest 25. Of the 26 potable water schemes, only three boast water treatment plants.

Most schemes use bore water as their sole source, and many are not disinfected.

In providing water and sewerage services, the SWQWSA Councils must overcome challenges posed by the remote and dispersed nature of their communities, the very small scale of most of their schemes, extremely limited rates bases and borrowing capacity, and small to very small communities with low per-capita incomes and inability/unwillingness to pay the full cost of providing services but increasing expectations about service quality.

At the same time, they are subject to an increasingly rigorous regulatory regime and water quality and environmental standards that may be beyond the capacity of their existing infrastructure and resourcing.

During 2021, using QWRAP Bid Pool Funds, the SWQWSA developed a detailed application which then successfully secured $1.6 million in funding from the Queensland Government’s Building Our Regions 6 funding round.

The BOR 6 funding was used to undertake detailed asset management planning across all water and sewage asset categories including Drinking Water Testing & Assessment of Water Quality, Sewerage Treatment Plant Inspection & Assessment, Reservoir Inspection & Assessment and Sewer Pump Station Inspection & Assessment.

This project aims to develop a clear picture of existing risks and a series of activities to provide the community with safe drinking water and modern wastewater management outcomes.

The communities within these LGAs are almost exclusively reliant on the Great Artesian Basin (GAB) for drinking water from bores with an average depth 800 metres. GAB bores have an expected asset life of 75 years.

Some key risks and Issues that have been identified through the SWQWSA asset management plan are:

• 11% of drinking water supply bores in the region are more than 100 years old and at critical risk of failure.
• 20% of drinking water supply bores in the region are more than 80 years old and are at serious risk of failure.
• A number of these critical risk towns are single bore supply placing these towns at risk of water security concerns.
• CCTV surveys of sewer network assets show that 12% of sewer assets by length of assets are at a point of critical failure.

The report has recommended the allocation of $3 million to a bore re-sleeving program to ensure water security for these communities, which represent around 40% of the total number of communities that are reliant on the GAB for drinking water supply.

A further $8 million will be required for a regional sewer relining program to restore the integrity of region’s 265 km of sewer mains.

SWQWSA is currently working with Minister Butcher and the Queensland Government as part of the Statewide Urban Water Risk Assessment (UWRA) to develop a partnership to address the identified risks and create modern sustainable water and sewage services across the South West of the State.