A plan to use recycled water, which currently runs out to sea, could double the production of food in Australia's salad bowl. The Lockyer Valley Somerset Water Collaborative, west of Brisbane, claims the region is among the most fertile in the world, but much of the land remained under-used because there was not enough water to produce food crops.
The collaborative was made up of representatives from local government, farming and business communities, and under its plan, recycled water currently running out to Moreton Bay would come from Wivenhoe Dam via a pipe scheme.
Chairman Graham Quirk: "We see more and more foodstuffs coming from overseas when we have the capacity to grow so much more here locally, and indeed develop our own earnings through further export to those countries looking for clean and healthy food."
The collaborative has developed a business case, which allegedly proves it could create 2,600 new full-time jobs and generate export earnings of more than $300 million in economic benefit to Queensland and Australia.
Source: abc.net.au