PRIME Minister Malcolm Turnbull and his deputy Barnaby Joyce are in Rockhampton today, with announcements about water infrastructure investments giving hope for the Rookwood Weir project.
An additional $440 million to break ground on key water projects across Australia has been put on the table with today’s release of the National Water Infrastructure Development Fund (NWIDF) guidelines.
Speaking at Canaroo, Pink Lily, near Rockhampton, the Prime Minister said Rookwood Weir was vital for the local community.
“We’ve just been talking to (Canaroo owner) Rob Lovegrove here and he was talking about how important the ability to irrigate his land is,” Mr Turnbull said.
“What we need is more and better water storage. We need to be able to use the huge water resources of northern Australia, and to do that we need to invest - we need the infrastructure.
“We’ve committed half a billion dollars to water infrastructure, another $2 billion in concessional loans and $60 million to fund the feasibility studies.
“We’re opening up the balance of the fund now, of that, we have $130 million committed to the Rookwood Weir. This is a project we should get on to now.”
Flynn MP Ken O’Dowd said the holdups from the Queensland Government were getting tiring quickly.
“We want to give the whole Queensland government a shake and let them know that we’re serious about what we’re doing and what we promised,” he said.
The Rookwood Weir project alone has the potential to double agricultural production in the region — unlocking an additional $1 billion in production value.
Queensland Country Life has contacted the State Government for a response.