Pipeline protesters blockade reservoir

On February 3, 300 angry Goulburn Valley residents, many of them farmers, blockaded the Sugarloaf reservoir just north of Melbourne to protest the construction of a pipeline from the Goulburn River to Melbourne's water supplies. The Goulburn River feeds into the Murray River system, increasingly drained by irrigation and, for many years now, a record drought.

The protesters leafleted visitors to the reservoir's park and displayed a large section of pipe with the words "Food bowl = dust bowl" to highlight their fears.

The Victorian Labor government has targeted water savings from improvements in irrigation infrastructure in the area as a reason to divert water to Melbourne. But, as protest organiser Jan Beer from Yea explained to Green Left Weekly, the Goulburn Valley area is already over-allocated in water permits, Lake Eildon — the reservoir for the Goulburn River — has not been full since 1996, and parts of the dry lake bed are considered a fire hazard.

Protesters who spoke to GLW argued that Melbourne's water shortages could first be addressed by cutting back on waste, such as the estimated 50 billion litres per year which is lost by water authorities through leaky pipes. Waste water recycling and storm water harvesting were also suggested.

According to the Plug the Pipe website, the planned pipeline will generate 135,000 tonnes of CO₂ per year — the equivalent of what 34,000 cars generate.

The pipeline will also cut through forest areas such as the Toolangi State Forest, with no environmental impact statements to assess potential impact to these forests, as the government has decided not to undertake an environmental impact assessment for the project.

Beer said that the protesters were planning blockades of the properties that the pipeline will pass through.

From GLW issue 739