Putting forward the idea of piping water from Tas to Vic....

[grumpybastard]

Putting forward the idea of piping water from Tas to Vic.... Even if you think its a more silly idea than a desalination plant its an entertaining watch non the less.

YouTube- Unpopular View #3 Part 1 - The Magic Solution

YouTube- Unpopular View #3 Part 2 - The Magic Solution



Curious to know what holes can be found in this theory?

BTW, how do you embed videos into the forum?

[numpty]

Can be done. Whether it is cost effective is another story. Plenty of other stuff is laid on the bottom of Bass Strait.

On a much smaller scale of course, but drinking water is pumped from Hamilton Island across to the golf course complex on Dent Island via an underwater poly pipe, and sewerage is brought back. I will qualify that it is in a different pipe:D;) Both thick walled 200mm poly, fully welded. It was an interesting exercise, both the assembly and laying.

[willem]

I reckon that idea has lots of merit. Taking water from where there is plenty and sending it to a place that has a shortage makes sense.

Much more sense than taking water from an already stressed river system that they are doing now! And I'd have to agree with this guy about the stupidity of the the desal plant. Talk about money and energy intensive!

At least worthy of serious investigation.

Willem

[Hardchina]

WTF, no jokes about tassie pumps having twice the head pressure ? :wasntme:

[BigJon]

the desal plant. Talk about money and energy intensive!



Laying pipelines and pumping water is also money and energy intensive!

[ScottW]

The cost of pumping would be huge. The pressure required at the start to overcome all the headlosses before it reached the other side would be way too much for any pipe. Pipe flow velocities over 1m/s create large friction losses. With the extended time in the pipe, other issues would arise. Extra chlorination stations would also be required along the run. Long pipes usually have booster pumps aling the way, but that wouldn't work in this situation. Those are just the things I can think of in 2 mins. I'm sure there are many more issues as well.

It's as bad as the idea of capturing out stormwater runoff and pumping it back into the dams.

[bblaze]

First off let me say keep your hands off our water, we have areas of tassie that are still in drought and dont have access to water. There is a theory about that if the water was taken from the highlands/lakes region then it would naturally flow to vic.
cheers
blaze
ps
Its bad enough vic steals our envoirment friendly hydro power

[Sly]

After 10 years in the water/waste water industy I think it comes down to looking at how we use the avalable water we have. Pinching it of others for the gratification of a few is not the way to go.

[miky]

After 10 years in the water/waste water industy I think it comes down to looking at how we use the avalable water we have. Pinching it of others for the gratification of a few is not the way to go.

Here here!
Considering how much water Victoria takes out of the Murray, stealing it from SA, I have to agree with you.

[willem]

Laying pipelines and pumping water is also money and energy intensive!

I think a little reality is needed here. The amount of energy needed to pump the water from Tassie to Victoria - if it needed any pumping at all - is minuscule compared to a desal plant. Just go and ask the West Australians, who have been pumping water over twice the distance (~650kms) from Perth to Kalgoorlie for a hundred years. And they have to pump it uphill about 300 metres whereas the water from Tassie to Victoria is coming downhill. If it can be done in WA it can be done here - the only thing it needs is the political will!

The comments about stealing the water from Tasmania are really quite irrelevant. The water would be paid for, and the revenue injection into the Tassie economy is much needed and would be well put to use. Perhaps some of the money could be put to use getting some of that water piped to drought stricken Tassie farmers - who must be really spitting chips knowing that just a few miles away is a huge reservoir of water that they can't access.

But this is no different to the situation just over 100 years ago in Perth. People bitterly criticised CY O'Connor, the brilliant engineer who designed and built the Kalgoorlie pipeline. The people of Kalgoorlie and the towns around have been very thankful to O'Connor ever since!

I reckon this idea of a pipeline from Tassie to Victoria has real merit and needs to be carefully examined!

Willem

[bee utey]

The trouble with grand water schemes is that the people who finance the project want their money back, and then some. So companies who buy water rights will insist the right to charge what they like, ban local users accessing the water that used to be theirs, insist end users use their water only, and demand the right to walk away as soon as the environment can no longer support the water extraction, and be compensated for it. No water project, including the new SA desal plant, happens without contracts to guarantee profits for the developers. Don't need the water? Tough, you are still paying through the nose for it.

The huge energy to pump water across Bass Straight would come from where? Gigawatts of hydroelectricity probably, and coal power when you run out of water power.

Far better to stop wasting clean water on processes that don't need it. How many percent of total water supply comes into direct contact with humans? Not much, I imagine. Reducing wastage and storing local runoff is a much more useful method of making water available to those who need it.

[willem]

The huge energy to pump water across Bass Straight would come from where? Gigawatts of hydroelectricity probably, and coal power when you run out of water power.



This is simply not true. The energy requirement is not great. See my post above re the Kalgoorlie pipeline.

Willem

[bee utey]

This is simply not true. The energy requirement is not great. See my post above re the Kalgoorlie pipeline.

Willem

Fair enough, a pipeline engineer is needed to give real numbers to this question. However I think the down hill part of the deal would be far less than the friction losses over how many km? Too lazy to get out the atlas.

The Kalgoorlie pipeline is a classic example of engineering might, benefitting the miners and the WA economy in large amounts. The flip side is that the original pipeline had steam powered pumping stations along it. This led to massive clearing of timber and the associated problems with rising dryland salinity. These costs weren't applied to the original pipeline and will cost mega dollars in lost acricultural production.

Simply without a full public analysis of cost and benefit no such scheme should go ahead, especially not in the hands of private developers.

For a better understanding of Australia's pipe dreams, you should read "The Water Dreamers, the remarkable history of our dry continent" by Michael Cathcart. I borrowed a copy from my local library, it was very interesting!

[grumpybastard]

You really need to watch the videos.... most of the questions are answered

Costs... Yield...environment....etc

Btw.. Victoria is building a desalination plant ...Cost $4.9 Billion ..water bills are expected to double over the next five years to pay for it

Update: Sorry that's already blown out to $5.6 Billion and it still in its infancy...

[willem]

Fair enough, a pipeline engineer is needed to give real numbers to this question. However I think the down hill part of the deal would be far less than the friction losses over how many km? Too lazy to get out the atlas.

The Kalgoorlie pipeline is a classic example of engineering might, benefitting the miners and the WA economy in large amounts. The flip side is that the original pipeline had steam powered pumping stations along it. This led to massive clearing of timber and the associated problems with rising dryland salinity. These costs weren't applied to the original pipeline and will cost mega dollars in lost acricultural production.

Simply without a full public analysis of cost and benefit no such scheme should go ahead, especially not in the hands of private developers.

For a better understanding of Australia's pipe dreams, you should read "The Water Dreamers, the remarkable history of our dry continent" by Michael Cathcart. I borrowed a copy from my local library, it was very interesting!

From Tassie to Melbourne ~ 350 kms, and the water source is significantly higher that the destination.

From Perth to Kalgoorlie ~ 650 km and the water source is 300 metres lower than the destination.

I acknowledge the problems of the past WRT the Kalgoorlie pipeline. But they aren't there today. Efficient electric pumps now pump the water. That pipeline has repaid the investment many many times. It gives life to the city of Kalgoorlie-Boulder and many other towns along the way.

Given the shorter distance, plus the elevation of the source over the destination, this should be easy - especially with more than a century of technological development since then!

Willem

[Bushie]

First off let me say keep your hands off our water, we have areas of tassie that are still in drought and dont have access to water. There is a theory about that if the water was taken from the highlands/lakes region then it would naturally flow to vic.
cheers
blaze
ps
Its bad enough vic steals our envoirment friendly hydro power

Of course there is nothing that people on the AUSTRALIAN island of tasmania, could ever be using from the AUSTRALIAN mainland. :D:D



Martyn