Member for Hawkesbury Dominic Perrottet has condemned Labor for putting their own political self-interest ahead of the Hawkesbury community as they continue their opposition to raising the Warragamba Dam wall.
Labor’s decision today to again refuse support for the NSW Government’s plans to lift Warragamba’s Dam wall by 14 metres to reduce the flood risk shows they do not care about protecting the property and lives of people living in the Hawkesbury.
“Labor has made it clear they care more about green votes in the inner-city than the lives and property of the people living in western Sydney,” Mr Perrottet said.
“Labor’s refusal to back the project is irresponsible, reckless and would endanger the lives of the people of Hawkesbury all so they can secure the votes of greenies who are happy to oppose this project while remaining safe from the threat of a deadly flood.”
Mr Perrottet said Labor candidate for Hawkesbury Councillor Peter Reynolds and Federal Labor Member for Macquarie Susan Templeman had chosen to bury their heads in the sand rather than stand up for the people of the Hawkesbury
“Raising the Warragamba Dam wall is a vital project for the NSW Government. The Hawkesbury-Nepean Valley is considered to have the highest single flood exposure in NSW, and we are delivering a long term strategy to reduce that risk,” Mr Perrottet said.
“We are getting on with the job of looking after our community by taking real action. We are cleaning up the mess left by the Labor Party that failed to deliver for sixteen years.
“I have called on Ms Templeman in the past to do the right thing and back this vital project to no avail. It is now up to Councillor Reynolds to show that he cares about the people of Hawkesbury and stand up to Labor’s blatant vote grabbing.”
The NSW Government has allocated $58 million to deliver the first stage of the flood strategy, which includes $30 million for planning, environmental assessments and community consultation for raising the dam wall by 14 metres as well as $28 million for better flood forecasting, emergency planning and improved evacuation signage, improving flood forecasting and integrating flood risk management in our regional planning.
More information on the Resilient Valley, Resilient Communities – the Hawkesbury-Nepean Valley Flood Risk Management Strategy is available to view at www.insw.com/expert-advice/hawkesbury-nepeanflood-risk-management-strategy.