The maximum subsidy value is capped at $150,000 per local water utility/council.

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Administered by the Department of Planning and Environment, the funding is part of the NSW Government’s three-year, $12.5 million Regional Leakage Reduction Program which was announced in 2022.

The goal is to save 7.5 billion litres of water per year across the state.

Since inception it has worked closely with 54 regional councils and Aboriginal communities to save 5.8 billion litres of water per year.

Bellingen Shire Council General Manager Mark Griffioen told News Of The Area, “We will certainly be looking at what projects we may have that would fit the criteria for the funding but there are no specifics at this point in time with the funding only just having been announced.”

Funding in the past has paid for new equipment, provided training, increased resources and supplied councils with comprehensive tools to save water.

Bellingen Shire Council, along with the other fourteen NSW councils named, have never before received this funding.

The plan is to complete all approved projects by May next year.

Minister for Water Rose Jackson said, “We know in regional NSW that an average of fifteen percent of water sourced from nature is lost because of leaking pipes or inefficient networks, which really adds up.

“This new funding is a game-changer, supporting councils to minimise water losses, upskill operators and help save hundreds of thousands of dollars.

“At the same time, it’s never been more important to boost drought resilience across regional NSW as we prepare for a more variable climate, and this work has a critical role to play in locking-in a more secure water future for local communities.”

By Andrea FERRARI