Hon Neil Thomson questions the Water Corporation's infrastructure maintenance given a large dividend forecast. He specifically asks about overdue pipe hangers on the Narrows Bridge, a backlog of failing metropolitan water mains, and funding for repairs.

AnsweredQoN 404Legislative Council
Asked
14 May 2026
Portfolio
Water

QuestionView source ↗

Water Corporation—Mains
maintenance404.Hon Neil Thomsonto
theLeader of the House representing the
Minister for Water:I refer to the
unprecedented $1.6 billion plus dividend forecast in 2026–27 by the Water
Corporation contrasted with the dire state of our infrastructure.(1) Can the minister confirm that more
than 200 pipe hangers on the Narrows Bridge water main have surpassed
their economic service life by 15 years?(2) What is the schedule for their
immediate replacement?(3) Is it true that there is a 152-kilometre
backlog of metropolitan water mains failing to meet the minimum level of
service?(4) Given
the massive forecast, what Water Corporation funds are being allocated to fund
repairs?

AnswerView source ↗

I thank the
honourable member for some notice of the question, which I answer on behalf of
the Leader of the House. The following response is provided by
the Minister for Water.
(1)–(2) Water Corporation has established a capital
project to replace the hangers over the next five to 10 years. Work is not
overdue and remains within advised timeframes based on physical inspections.
The service life span of any asset is notional, and condition inspections are
routinely undertaken to ensure that the pipe and its supporting infrastructure
continue to function as intended.
(3) No.
(4) There has been $100 million in
funding allocated to replace metro water reticulation mains over the next five
years.

Explore WA Government Data

Search the full archive in the free dashboard, or query programmatically via API.

Explore more