Council’s new recycled water network greens Bowen

Bowen’s new recycled water network will ‘green and grow’ Bowen by connecting the network to Bowen’s parks and public green spaces.

Today’s opening event celebrated the $4.047 million initiative, jointly funded by Council and the Queensland Government’s Building our Regions program, to deliver a 5.7-kilometre upgrade and expansion of Bowen’s recycled water network.

After the commissioning of the new Bowen Sewage Treatment Plant late last year, the next stage of the project was to upgrade sections of the water storage and pumping system at the Plant.

Council has also installed new recycled water mains and pipelines along Queens Road and new pipelines linking Mullers Lagoon parkland with the Bowen sportsground.

New smart irrigation systems have been installed in many public green spaces across Bowen, including the Bowen Cemetery, the Bowen foreshore, Mullers Lagoon, the Bowen sportsground, Gideon Pott Park at Queens Beach, Hansen Park and Case Park.

Mayor Andrew Willcox said the high-quality recycled water would be reused to irrigate and green Bowen’s parks, sports fields and golf courses.

“This project is a fantastic innovation and a big step forward in greening and growing Bowen for future generations,” he said.

“The new Bowen Sewage Treatment Plant, completed in December last year, can service a population of up to 14,000 people, so we are preparing for the growth of the town.

“The increased production of recycled water will also lower the risks of damage to the Great Barrier Reef.

“The Greening and Growing Bowen initiative was a huge project that had to be split over several stages,” Mayor Willcox said.

“First we needed to upgrade and extend the recycled water network before then upgrading the safety, automation and data monitoring of the existing plant and finally commissioning and turning on the new treatment plant.”

“The upgrade is also significant in its benefits to the natural environment, with a major improvement in the quality of water released into the Coral Sea.”

Minister for State Development Cameron Dick said delivering job-creating infrastructure that improves liveability and economic conditions is a top priority of the state government.

“More than 12 jobs were supported during the project’s construction,” Mr Dick said.

“The improved network will preserve valuable water resources by improving water efficiency.”