❓ Question regarding the feasibility of using Wellington Dam as a water source instead of the Yarragadee aquifer, given environmental concerns and dam's underutilisation. Minister defends current approach, citing salinity issues and ongoing recovery efforts for the dam.
AnsweredQoN 946Legislative Assembly
QuestionView source ↗
WELLINGTON DAM
I refer to the qualified support given by the Environmental Protection Authority for the Water Corporation’s proposal to extract water from the south west Yarragadee aquifer. (1) Given the potential environmental risks associated with the proposal to construct and operate a 45-gigalitre a year bore field near Jarrahwood, a treatment plant and a pipe to link into the integrated water supply system, will the government reinvestigate the use of water from Wellington Dam? (2) Is the minister aware that the total storage capacity of Wellington Dam is 186 gigalitres, of which only 24.86 gigalitres was used in 2005-06? (3) Why is the minister ignoring the surplus water supplies of Wellington Dam, which would be less costly and more environmentally acceptable to use than the proposed construction to draw water from the south west Yarragadee aquifer? Mr J.C. KOBELKE
I refer to the qualified support given by the Environmental Protection Authority for the Water Corporation’s proposal to extract water from the south west Yarragadee aquifer. (1) Given the potential environmental risks associated with the proposal to construct and operate a 45-gigalitre a year bore field near Jarrahwood, a treatment plant and a pipe to link into the integrated water supply system, will the government reinvestigate the use of water from Wellington Dam? (2) Is the minister aware that the total storage capacity of Wellington Dam is 186 gigalitres, of which only 24.86 gigalitres was used in 2005-06? (3) Why is the minister ignoring the surplus water supplies of Wellington Dam, which would be less costly and more environmentally acceptable to use than the proposed construction to draw water from the south west Yarragadee aquifer? Mr J.C. KOBELKE
AnswerView source ↗
(1)-(3) I thank the member for his question because this is an important issue. I am happy to try to educate the opposition about some of the intricacies of water management. In the past, the opposition has made itself the laughing stock of the whole of Australia. Even the Prime Minister and Malcolm Turnbull, the Prime Minister’s parliamentary secretary responsible for water, have shown a great deal of disdain for the Liberal opposition’s total inability to come to grips with the realities of water. The fact is that Wellington Dam is a very large dam, as the member mentioned. However, he failed to mention that its salinity is up around 1 000 milligrams a litre, and that salinity in water must be under 500 milligrams a litre to be consumed as drinking water. It also does not meet the Australian drinking standards in a range of other areas. A recovery project for the dam started under the previous government, and we have put a lot of money into it. However, that recovery is 10 or 15 years off. We need to bring on stream a major new source within the next three to five years. We cannot wait 10 or 15 years to see whether the water from the Wellington Dam will provide a source of potable water. Desalinated water may be more expensive than water drawn from the south west Yarragadee aquifer because it is not a matter of just putting it into the pipeline. Mr P.D. Omodei : You accuse us of not knowing. You do not even know what the true cost is of supplying water from the Wellington Dam. Mr J.C. KOBELKE : Exactly. Mr P.D. Omodei : Why don’t you know? Mr J.C. KOBELKE : I do not commit to spending billions of dollars without knowing the cost. That is exactly the point. We are doing the investigation so that if we commit to a project, we will know the environmental consequences and the cost. The Leader of the Opposition would commit hundreds of millions of dollars to a project when he does not even know the cost of it. It is time the opposition tried to get some credibility on water instead of making absolutely stupid statements that reveal its total ignorance on water issues.
(1) Given the potential environmental risks associated with the proposal to construct and operate a 45-gigalitre a year bore field near Jarrahwood, a treatment plant and a pipe to link into the integrated water supply system, will the government reinvestigate the use of water from Wellington Dam? (2) Is the minister aware that the total storage capacity of Wellington Dam is 186 gigalitres, of which only 24.86 gigalitres was used in 2005-06? (3) Why is the minister ignoring the surplus water supplies of Wellington Dam, which would be less costly and more environmentally acceptable to use than the proposed construction to draw water from the south west Yarragadee aquifer? Mr J.C. KOBELKE replied: (1)-(3) I thank the member for his question because this is an important issue. I am happy to try to educate the opposition about some of the intricacies of water management. In the past, the opposition has made itself the laughing stock of the whole of Australia. Even the Prime Minister and Malcolm Turnbull, the Prime Minister’s parliamentary secretary responsible for water, have shown a great deal of disdain for the Liberal opposition’s total inability to come to grips with the realities of water. The fact is that Wellington Dam is a very large dam, as the member mentioned. However, he failed to mention that its salinity is up around 1 000 milligrams a litre, and that salinity in water must be under 500 milligrams a litre to be consumed as drinking water. It also does not meet the Australian drinking standards in a range of other areas. A recovery project for the dam started under the previous government, and we have put a lot of money into it. However, that recovery is 10 or 15 years off. We need to bring on stream a major new source within the next three to five years. We cannot wait 10 or 15 years to see whether the water from the Wellington Dam will provide a source of potable water. Desalinated water may be more expensive than water drawn from the south west Yarragadee aquifer because it is not a matter of just putting it into the pipeline. Mr P.D. Omodei : You accuse us of not knowing. You do not even know what the true cost is of supplying water from the Wellington Dam. Mr J.C. KOBELKE : Exactly. Mr P.D. Omodei : Why don’t you know? Mr J.C. KOBELKE : I do not commit to spending billions of dollars without knowing the cost. That is exactly the point. We are doing the investigation so that if we commit to a project, we will know the environmental consequences and the cost. The Leader of the Opposition would commit hundreds of millions of dollars to a project when he does not even know the cost of it. It is time the opposition tried to get some credibility on water instead of making absolutely stupid statements that reveal its total ignorance on water issues.
(2) Is the minister aware that the total storage capacity of Wellington Dam is 186 gigalitres, of which only 24.86 gigalitres was used in 2005-06? (3) Why is the minister ignoring the surplus water supplies of Wellington Dam, which would be less costly and more environmentally acceptable to use than the proposed construction to draw water from the south west Yarragadee aquifer? Mr J.C. KOBELKE replied: (1)-(3) I thank the member for his question because this is an important issue. I am happy to try to educate the opposition about some of the intricacies of water management. In the past, the opposition has made itself the laughing stock of the whole of Australia. Even the Prime Minister and Malcolm Turnbull, the Prime Minister’s parliamentary secretary responsible for water, have shown a great deal of disdain for the Liberal opposition’s total inability to come to grips with the realities of water. The fact is that Wellington Dam is a very large dam, as the member mentioned. However, he failed to mention that its salinity is up around 1 000 milligrams a litre, and that salinity in water must be under 500 milligrams a litre to be consumed as drinking water. It also does not meet the Australian drinking standards in a range of other areas. A recovery project for the dam started under the previous government, and we have put a lot of money into it. However, that recovery is 10 or 15 years off. We need to bring on stream a major new source within the next three to five years. We cannot wait 10 or 15 years to see whether the water from the Wellington Dam will provide a source of potable water. Desalinated water may be more expensive than water drawn from the south west Yarragadee aquifer because it is not a matter of just putting it into the pipeline. Mr P.D. Omodei : You accuse us of not knowing. You do not even know what the true cost is of supplying water from the Wellington Dam. Mr J.C. KOBELKE : Exactly. Mr P.D. Omodei : Why don’t you know? Mr J.C. KOBELKE : I do not commit to spending billions of dollars without knowing the cost. That is exactly the point. We are doing the investigation so that if we commit to a project, we will know the environmental consequences and the cost. The Leader of the Opposition would commit hundreds of millions of dollars to a project when he does not even know the cost of it. It is time the opposition tried to get some credibility on water instead of making absolutely stupid statements that reveal its total ignorance on water issues.
(3) Why is the minister ignoring the surplus water supplies of Wellington Dam, which would be less costly and more environmentally acceptable to use than the proposed construction to draw water from the south west Yarragadee aquifer? Mr J.C. KOBELKE replied: (1)-(3) I thank the member for his question because this is an important issue. I am happy to try to educate the opposition about some of the intricacies of water management. In the past, the opposition has made itself the laughing stock of the whole of Australia. Even the Prime Minister and Malcolm Turnbull, the Prime Minister’s parliamentary secretary responsible for water, have shown a great deal of disdain for the Liberal opposition’s total inability to come to grips with the realities of water. The fact is that Wellington Dam is a very large dam, as the member mentioned. However, he failed to mention that its salinity is up around 1 000 milligrams a litre, and that salinity in water must be under 500 milligrams a litre to be consumed as drinking water. It also does not meet the Australian drinking standards in a range of other areas. A recovery project for the dam started under the previous government, and we have put a lot of money into it. However, that recovery is 10 or 15 years off. We need to bring on stream a major new source within the next three to five years. We cannot wait 10 or 15 years to see whether the water from the Wellington Dam will provide a source of potable water. Desalinated water may be more expensive than water drawn from the south west Yarragadee aquifer because it is not a matter of just putting it into the pipeline. Mr P.D. Omodei : You accuse us of not knowing. You do not even know what the true cost is of supplying water from the Wellington Dam. Mr J.C. KOBELKE : Exactly. Mr P.D. Omodei : Why don’t you know? Mr J.C. KOBELKE : I do not commit to spending billions of dollars without knowing the cost. That is exactly the point. We are doing the investigation so that if we commit to a project, we will know the environmental consequences and the cost. The Leader of the Opposition would commit hundreds of millions of dollars to a project when he does not even know the cost of it. It is time the opposition tried to get some credibility on water instead of making absolutely stupid statements that reveal its total ignorance on water issues.
Mr J.C. KOBELKE replied: (1)-(3) I thank the member for his question because this is an important issue. I am happy to try to educate the opposition about some of the intricacies of water management. In the past, the opposition has made itself the laughing stock of the whole of Australia. Even the Prime Minister and Malcolm Turnbull, the Prime Minister’s parliamentary secretary responsible for water, have shown a great deal of disdain for the Liberal opposition’s total inability to come to grips with the realities of water. The fact is that Wellington Dam is a very large dam, as the member mentioned. However, he failed to mention that its salinity is up around 1 000 milligrams a litre, and that salinity in water must be under 500 milligrams a litre to be consumed as drinking water. It also does not meet the Australian drinking standards in a range of other areas. A recovery project for the dam started under the previous government, and we have put a lot of money into it. However, that recovery is 10 or 15 years off. We need to bring on stream a major new source within the next three to five years. We cannot wait 10 or 15 years to see whether the water from the Wellington Dam will provide a source of potable water. Desalinated water may be more expensive than water drawn from the south west Yarragadee aquifer because it is not a matter of just putting it into the pipeline. Mr P.D. Omodei : You accuse us of not knowing. You do not even know what the true cost is of supplying water from the Wellington Dam. Mr J.C. KOBELKE : Exactly. Mr P.D. Omodei : Why don’t you know? Mr J.C. KOBELKE : I do not commit to spending billions of dollars without knowing the cost. That is exactly the point. We are doing the investigation so that if we commit to a project, we will know the environmental consequences and the cost. The Leader of the Opposition would commit hundreds of millions of dollars to a project when he does not even know the cost of it. It is time the opposition tried to get some credibility on water instead of making absolutely stupid statements that reveal its total ignorance on water issues.
(1)-(3) I thank the member for his question because this is an important issue. I am happy to try to educate the opposition about some of the intricacies of water management. In the past, the opposition has made itself the laughing stock of the whole of Australia. Even the Prime Minister and Malcolm Turnbull, the Prime Minister’s parliamentary secretary responsible for water, have shown a great deal of disdain for the Liberal opposition’s total inability to come to grips with the realities of water. The fact is that Wellington Dam is a very large dam, as the member mentioned. However, he failed to mention that its salinity is up around 1 000 milligrams a litre, and that salinity in water must be under 500 milligrams a litre to be consumed as drinking water. It also does not meet the Australian drinking standards in a range of other areas. A recovery project for the dam started under the previous government, and we have put a lot of money into it. However, that recovery is 10 or 15 years off. We need to bring on stream a major new source within the next three to five years. We cannot wait 10 or 15 years to see whether the water from the Wellington Dam will provide a source of potable water. Desalinated water may be more expensive than water drawn from the south west Yarragadee aquifer because it is not a matter of just putting it into the pipeline. Mr P.D. Omodei : You accuse us of not knowing. You do not even know what the true cost is of supplying water from the Wellington Dam. Mr J.C. KOBELKE : Exactly. Mr P.D. Omodei : Why don’t you know? Mr J.C. KOBELKE : I do not commit to spending billions of dollars without knowing the cost. That is exactly the point. We are doing the investigation so that if we commit to a project, we will know the environmental consequences and the cost. The Leader of the Opposition would commit hundreds of millions of dollars to a project when he does not even know the cost of it. It is time the opposition tried to get some credibility on water instead of making absolutely stupid statements that reveal its total ignorance on water issues.
Mr P.D. Omodei : You accuse us of not knowing. You do not even know what the true cost is of supplying water from the Wellington Dam. Mr J.C. KOBELKE : Exactly. Mr P.D. Omodei : Why don’t you know? Mr J.C. KOBELKE : I do not commit to spending billions of dollars without knowing the cost. That is exactly the point. We are doing the investigation so that if we commit to a project, we will know the environmental consequences and the cost. The Leader of the Opposition would commit hundreds of millions of dollars to a project when he does not even know the cost of it. It is time the opposition tried to get some credibility on water instead of making absolutely stupid statements that reveal its total ignorance on water issues.
Mr J.C. KOBELKE : Exactly. Mr P.D. Omodei : Why don’t you know? Mr J.C. KOBELKE : I do not commit to spending billions of dollars without knowing the cost. That is exactly the point. We are doing the investigation so that if we commit to a project, we will know the environmental consequences and the cost. The Leader of the Opposition would commit hundreds of millions of dollars to a project when he does not even know the cost of it. It is time the opposition tried to get some credibility on water instead of making absolutely stupid statements that reveal its total ignorance on water issues.
Mr P.D. Omodei : Why don’t you know? Mr J.C. KOBELKE : I do not commit to spending billions of dollars without knowing the cost. That is exactly the point. We are doing the investigation so that if we commit to a project, we will know the environmental consequences and the cost. The Leader of the Opposition would commit hundreds of millions of dollars to a project when he does not even know the cost of it. It is time the opposition tried to get some credibility on water instead of making absolutely stupid statements that reveal its total ignorance on water issues.
Mr J.C. KOBELKE : I do not commit to spending billions of dollars without knowing the cost. That is exactly the point. We are doing the investigation so that if we commit to a project, we will know the environmental consequences and the cost. The Leader of the Opposition would commit hundreds of millions of dollars to a project when he does not even know the cost of it. It is time the opposition tried to get some credibility on water instead of making absolutely stupid statements that reveal its total ignorance on water issues.
(1) Given the potential environmental risks associated with the proposal to construct and operate a 45-gigalitre a year bore field near Jarrahwood, a treatment plant and a pipe to link into the integrated water supply system, will the government reinvestigate the use of water from Wellington Dam? (2) Is the minister aware that the total storage capacity of Wellington Dam is 186 gigalitres, of which only 24.86 gigalitres was used in 2005-06? (3) Why is the minister ignoring the surplus water supplies of Wellington Dam, which would be less costly and more environmentally acceptable to use than the proposed construction to draw water from the south west Yarragadee aquifer? Mr J.C. KOBELKE replied: (1)-(3) I thank the member for his question because this is an important issue. I am happy to try to educate the opposition about some of the intricacies of water management. In the past, the opposition has made itself the laughing stock of the whole of Australia. Even the Prime Minister and Malcolm Turnbull, the Prime Minister’s parliamentary secretary responsible for water, have shown a great deal of disdain for the Liberal opposition’s total inability to come to grips with the realities of water. The fact is that Wellington Dam is a very large dam, as the member mentioned. However, he failed to mention that its salinity is up around 1 000 milligrams a litre, and that salinity in water must be under 500 milligrams a litre to be consumed as drinking water. It also does not meet the Australian drinking standards in a range of other areas. A recovery project for the dam started under the previous government, and we have put a lot of money into it. However, that recovery is 10 or 15 years off. We need to bring on stream a major new source within the next three to five years. We cannot wait 10 or 15 years to see whether the water from the Wellington Dam will provide a source of potable water. Desalinated water may be more expensive than water drawn from the south west Yarragadee aquifer because it is not a matter of just putting it into the pipeline. Mr P.D. Omodei : You accuse us of not knowing. You do not even know what the true cost is of supplying water from the Wellington Dam. Mr J.C. KOBELKE : Exactly. Mr P.D. Omodei : Why don’t you know? Mr J.C. KOBELKE : I do not commit to spending billions of dollars without knowing the cost. That is exactly the point. We are doing the investigation so that if we commit to a project, we will know the environmental consequences and the cost. The Leader of the Opposition would commit hundreds of millions of dollars to a project when he does not even know the cost of it. It is time the opposition tried to get some credibility on water instead of making absolutely stupid statements that reveal its total ignorance on water issues.
(2) Is the minister aware that the total storage capacity of Wellington Dam is 186 gigalitres, of which only 24.86 gigalitres was used in 2005-06? (3) Why is the minister ignoring the surplus water supplies of Wellington Dam, which would be less costly and more environmentally acceptable to use than the proposed construction to draw water from the south west Yarragadee aquifer? Mr J.C. KOBELKE replied: (1)-(3) I thank the member for his question because this is an important issue. I am happy to try to educate the opposition about some of the intricacies of water management. In the past, the opposition has made itself the laughing stock of the whole of Australia. Even the Prime Minister and Malcolm Turnbull, the Prime Minister’s parliamentary secretary responsible for water, have shown a great deal of disdain for the Liberal opposition’s total inability to come to grips with the realities of water. The fact is that Wellington Dam is a very large dam, as the member mentioned. However, he failed to mention that its salinity is up around 1 000 milligrams a litre, and that salinity in water must be under 500 milligrams a litre to be consumed as drinking water. It also does not meet the Australian drinking standards in a range of other areas. A recovery project for the dam started under the previous government, and we have put a lot of money into it. However, that recovery is 10 or 15 years off. We need to bring on stream a major new source within the next three to five years. We cannot wait 10 or 15 years to see whether the water from the Wellington Dam will provide a source of potable water. Desalinated water may be more expensive than water drawn from the south west Yarragadee aquifer because it is not a matter of just putting it into the pipeline. Mr P.D. Omodei : You accuse us of not knowing. You do not even know what the true cost is of supplying water from the Wellington Dam. Mr J.C. KOBELKE : Exactly. Mr P.D. Omodei : Why don’t you know? Mr J.C. KOBELKE : I do not commit to spending billions of dollars without knowing the cost. That is exactly the point. We are doing the investigation so that if we commit to a project, we will know the environmental consequences and the cost. The Leader of the Opposition would commit hundreds of millions of dollars to a project when he does not even know the cost of it. It is time the opposition tried to get some credibility on water instead of making absolutely stupid statements that reveal its total ignorance on water issues.
(3) Why is the minister ignoring the surplus water supplies of Wellington Dam, which would be less costly and more environmentally acceptable to use than the proposed construction to draw water from the south west Yarragadee aquifer? Mr J.C. KOBELKE replied: (1)-(3) I thank the member for his question because this is an important issue. I am happy to try to educate the opposition about some of the intricacies of water management. In the past, the opposition has made itself the laughing stock of the whole of Australia. Even the Prime Minister and Malcolm Turnbull, the Prime Minister’s parliamentary secretary responsible for water, have shown a great deal of disdain for the Liberal opposition’s total inability to come to grips with the realities of water. The fact is that Wellington Dam is a very large dam, as the member mentioned. However, he failed to mention that its salinity is up around 1 000 milligrams a litre, and that salinity in water must be under 500 milligrams a litre to be consumed as drinking water. It also does not meet the Australian drinking standards in a range of other areas. A recovery project for the dam started under the previous government, and we have put a lot of money into it. However, that recovery is 10 or 15 years off. We need to bring on stream a major new source within the next three to five years. We cannot wait 10 or 15 years to see whether the water from the Wellington Dam will provide a source of potable water. Desalinated water may be more expensive than water drawn from the south west Yarragadee aquifer because it is not a matter of just putting it into the pipeline. Mr P.D. Omodei : You accuse us of not knowing. You do not even know what the true cost is of supplying water from the Wellington Dam. Mr J.C. KOBELKE : Exactly. Mr P.D. Omodei : Why don’t you know? Mr J.C. KOBELKE : I do not commit to spending billions of dollars without knowing the cost. That is exactly the point. We are doing the investigation so that if we commit to a project, we will know the environmental consequences and the cost. The Leader of the Opposition would commit hundreds of millions of dollars to a project when he does not even know the cost of it. It is time the opposition tried to get some credibility on water instead of making absolutely stupid statements that reveal its total ignorance on water issues.
Mr J.C. KOBELKE replied: (1)-(3) I thank the member for his question because this is an important issue. I am happy to try to educate the opposition about some of the intricacies of water management. In the past, the opposition has made itself the laughing stock of the whole of Australia. Even the Prime Minister and Malcolm Turnbull, the Prime Minister’s parliamentary secretary responsible for water, have shown a great deal of disdain for the Liberal opposition’s total inability to come to grips with the realities of water. The fact is that Wellington Dam is a very large dam, as the member mentioned. However, he failed to mention that its salinity is up around 1 000 milligrams a litre, and that salinity in water must be under 500 milligrams a litre to be consumed as drinking water. It also does not meet the Australian drinking standards in a range of other areas. A recovery project for the dam started under the previous government, and we have put a lot of money into it. However, that recovery is 10 or 15 years off. We need to bring on stream a major new source within the next three to five years. We cannot wait 10 or 15 years to see whether the water from the Wellington Dam will provide a source of potable water. Desalinated water may be more expensive than water drawn from the south west Yarragadee aquifer because it is not a matter of just putting it into the pipeline. Mr P.D. Omodei : You accuse us of not knowing. You do not even know what the true cost is of supplying water from the Wellington Dam. Mr J.C. KOBELKE : Exactly. Mr P.D. Omodei : Why don’t you know? Mr J.C. KOBELKE : I do not commit to spending billions of dollars without knowing the cost. That is exactly the point. We are doing the investigation so that if we commit to a project, we will know the environmental consequences and the cost. The Leader of the Opposition would commit hundreds of millions of dollars to a project when he does not even know the cost of it. It is time the opposition tried to get some credibility on water instead of making absolutely stupid statements that reveal its total ignorance on water issues.
(1)-(3) I thank the member for his question because this is an important issue. I am happy to try to educate the opposition about some of the intricacies of water management. In the past, the opposition has made itself the laughing stock of the whole of Australia. Even the Prime Minister and Malcolm Turnbull, the Prime Minister’s parliamentary secretary responsible for water, have shown a great deal of disdain for the Liberal opposition’s total inability to come to grips with the realities of water. The fact is that Wellington Dam is a very large dam, as the member mentioned. However, he failed to mention that its salinity is up around 1 000 milligrams a litre, and that salinity in water must be under 500 milligrams a litre to be consumed as drinking water. It also does not meet the Australian drinking standards in a range of other areas. A recovery project for the dam started under the previous government, and we have put a lot of money into it. However, that recovery is 10 or 15 years off. We need to bring on stream a major new source within the next three to five years. We cannot wait 10 or 15 years to see whether the water from the Wellington Dam will provide a source of potable water. Desalinated water may be more expensive than water drawn from the south west Yarragadee aquifer because it is not a matter of just putting it into the pipeline. Mr P.D. Omodei : You accuse us of not knowing. You do not even know what the true cost is of supplying water from the Wellington Dam. Mr J.C. KOBELKE : Exactly. Mr P.D. Omodei : Why don’t you know? Mr J.C. KOBELKE : I do not commit to spending billions of dollars without knowing the cost. That is exactly the point. We are doing the investigation so that if we commit to a project, we will know the environmental consequences and the cost. The Leader of the Opposition would commit hundreds of millions of dollars to a project when he does not even know the cost of it. It is time the opposition tried to get some credibility on water instead of making absolutely stupid statements that reveal its total ignorance on water issues.
Mr P.D. Omodei : You accuse us of not knowing. You do not even know what the true cost is of supplying water from the Wellington Dam. Mr J.C. KOBELKE : Exactly. Mr P.D. Omodei : Why don’t you know? Mr J.C. KOBELKE : I do not commit to spending billions of dollars without knowing the cost. That is exactly the point. We are doing the investigation so that if we commit to a project, we will know the environmental consequences and the cost. The Leader of the Opposition would commit hundreds of millions of dollars to a project when he does not even know the cost of it. It is time the opposition tried to get some credibility on water instead of making absolutely stupid statements that reveal its total ignorance on water issues.
Mr J.C. KOBELKE : Exactly. Mr P.D. Omodei : Why don’t you know? Mr J.C. KOBELKE : I do not commit to spending billions of dollars without knowing the cost. That is exactly the point. We are doing the investigation so that if we commit to a project, we will know the environmental consequences and the cost. The Leader of the Opposition would commit hundreds of millions of dollars to a project when he does not even know the cost of it. It is time the opposition tried to get some credibility on water instead of making absolutely stupid statements that reveal its total ignorance on water issues.
Mr P.D. Omodei : Why don’t you know? Mr J.C. KOBELKE : I do not commit to spending billions of dollars without knowing the cost. That is exactly the point. We are doing the investigation so that if we commit to a project, we will know the environmental consequences and the cost. The Leader of the Opposition would commit hundreds of millions of dollars to a project when he does not even know the cost of it. It is time the opposition tried to get some credibility on water instead of making absolutely stupid statements that reveal its total ignorance on water issues.
Mr J.C. KOBELKE : I do not commit to spending billions of dollars without knowing the cost. That is exactly the point. We are doing the investigation so that if we commit to a project, we will know the environmental consequences and the cost. The Leader of the Opposition would commit hundreds of millions of dollars to a project when he does not even know the cost of it. It is time the opposition tried to get some credibility on water instead of making absolutely stupid statements that reveal its total ignorance on water issues.
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