31 March 2009
MELBOURNE WATER CONFIDENT IN WATER ACT
Melbourne Water is confident that legal rights under the Water Act (1989) to enter private property to build the Sugarloaf Pipeline will be upheld, and that trespass charges will be dismissed.
Section 133 of the Water Act (1989) allows Melbourne Water employees and contractors to lawfully enter private properties to conduct works under the Act. This is similar to other utility authorities entering properties to install other vital infrastructure and services, like gas and telephone lines, across the state.
Legal proceedings are ongoing and Melbourne Water will continue to work to resolve the matter, in the interests of the project and the workers who are at the centre of the trespass charges.
Work on the Sugarloaf Pipeline is also continuing, with around 20km of the 70km pipe now in the ground.
Media Contact: Andrew McGinnes +613 9235 7277 +61 (0)403 930 846