THE NEXT FOUR YEARS

- The State's water businesses are experiencing a continued period of high capital expenditure of around $990 million in 2006-07 or 10 per cent of the State's infrastructure budget. This investment means:

• $721 million for Sydney Water for Metropolitan Water Plan initiatives and water and sewerage system improvements and growth

• $134 million for Sydney Catchment Authority for Metropolitan Water Plan initiatives and other works

• $108 million for Hunter Water for water and sewerage system improvements and growth

• $28 million for State Water for maintaining the integrity of the State's regional dams.

- Projects to allow access to deep water from Warragamba and Nepean Dams are currently being undertaken, providing an additional 40 billion litres of water per year. These projects are estimated at $112 million.

- Groundwater investigations indicate that there are promising reserves at Kangaloon and Leonay near Penrith. This will be accessed if Sydney dam levels fall below 40 per cent.

- The Government is undertaking the planning work to fast-track construction of a desalination plant if dam levels drop to 30 per cent.

- Water recycling schemes in the Sydney region include dual reticulation in new growth areas at Rouse Hill (Stage 3) and Hoxton Park and industrial reuse at BlueScope Steel in Wollongong. These and other projects will provide an additional 15 billion litres per year of recycled water.

- The Government will be contributing $221 million to assist Local Water Utilities upgrade water and sewerage schemes in rural areas as part of the Country Towns Water Supply and Sewerage Program, including $70 million in 2006-07. Improvements to the Suma Park Dam and Spring Creek Dam in Orange and reuse at the Tamworth sewage treatment plant are part of this Program.

- As part of the water recovery measures under the joint government Living Murray Initiative, the Darling Anabranch pipeline will be constructed to provide stock, domestic and irrigation water supplies to Anabranch landholders. Costing an estimated $54 million, the pipeline will release about 47 billion litres of water per annum to the environment.

- An upgrade to the connection between the Hunter Water and Gosford Wyong systems to allow more water to be transferred to the Central Coast to provide a secure water supply. This upgrade is estimated at $17 million.

- To ensure efficient supplies for stock, domestic, irrigation and town water users the Government is investing in weirs and major dams such as Keepit Dam located to the north west of Gunnedah on the Namoi River.