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Something Shirley mentioned in the viewtopic.php?f=21&t=4218 thread about moving the water from the flooded Nth Qld rivers to the Upper Darling, sparked my interest, so I Googled it and found this. It was called the New Bradfield Scheme ://www.abc.net.au/news/2019-11-01/bradfiel ... e/11662942 .

Expecting all of Australia to foot the bill for water reserved for Qld was never going to get support outside Qld, but could enough water be moved using renewable energy rather than building a mega dam and drilling holes through the mountain?

A few ideas:
An Archenemies Screw, lots of info on Google https://www.google.com/search?rlz=1C1CH ... 36&bih=723 A series of these water lifting devices powered by renewable energy and a series of dams to get the water high enough for a siphon system of pipework to get it over the hill.

A series of big ram pumps, explained here https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zFdyqTGx32A that is a self fuelled pump that as been around for yrs. The ones I've help install had an air bleed in valve that just had a ball bearing is the sealing device, much like the snorkel and pin-pong ball that was used in the diving gear for kids ... well when I was a kid anyway
The top of the chamber used to store the generated kinetic energy from the water falling was shaped like an upside down bell, so they were nick-named bell pumps. The idea was the air pressure across such a large area could push the water up the pump line at a greater pressure and therefore higher than a straight tube could .....

A combination of such devices could move water but still return water to the river so it wasn't starved of flow completely ......

OK, lunch is over, anyone have any great ideas to add to the scheme .... or reasons why it just wouldn't work?

T1 Terry

A fleet of solar-powered helicopters with canvas firefighting buckets slung underneath?

The Bradfield/ new Bradfield scheme has been around since the 30's. The big issue is who will finance it. The point of it was to get water flowing on the west side of the great dividing range so some form of agriculture could be pursued. Obviously it never eventuated, but things were once again brought to the forefront when people realised that the Murray Darling was not flowing anywhere near how it had in the past. If you are bored, ask Mr Google how much water is diverted from there to be stored in massive dams to provide irrigation to cotton farms, Cubbie Station being just one example.

Hey, Shirley,
I have a great idea…
Why not build some dams on the Snowy River, tunnel under the blue Mountains and feed the water to the cockies' farms on the western side.
While we're at it, we could instal a bunch of hydro-electric generators in the pipes and generate electricity!
For a workforce, we could make all the reffos coming from other countries do compulsory work there.

We could do the same on some rivers in Queensland.
Only take a coupla decades and a few billion dollars…
I'm sure ScoMo would OK the plan "in the national interest" … even if he won't get the political kudos, but lotsa criticism for it.

You know the way the whole catchment is working at present that feeds the River Murray (eventually) is a marvel.
But I really do wonder if the 4 states involved had population numbers reversed would it be operated differently?
Imagine SA had NSW population for instance? For a start the extra votes in Fed elections would alter someone's thinking!!
It is what it is..... We'll survive!

But it doesn't have to be, Bruce, think of all the arid land that could be cultivated.

That's half the problem tho Shirley. Every time there's a fer gallons of water to spare it gets used or bought up to get rid of it but once there's a little bit of a dry year it all gets used up in the top half of the system & bugger you Jack down stream.
I've heard the old argument of "it fell in our state so it should be used in our state" before.
That's why all concerned states made the original agreement.
Trouble is it isn't been adhered to. Could say it's been circumnavigated. Flood harvesting comes to mind?
If it isn't a flood it never gets halfway through the system.
Most Southern States have given up fighting for it.
Orange orchards, apricot trees & vineyards being bulldozed still every where in the Riverland.
Easier to sell the water rights & go off in a motorhome somewhere!!! hehe

Long time since this country has had the political will or leadership to do the big bold schemes like the Snowy, there is no reason the Bradfield (or a version) would not work, and it is not as if southern states can whinge about not getting water that is now running into the ocean.

It seems that they can pump gas through pipes to wherever they want but not water, no money to be made.

PeterH

The fact that so much water runs into the ocean in the wet season in FNQ was my reason for thinking it would be good piped back inland.
Mardi Dam that supplies most of the old Wyong Shire was built in the wrong location all the water has to be pumped into it that was probably political at the time. We now have the big Mangrove Creek Dam, capacity 190,000megalitres supplying the NSW Central Coast too.
Amazing to see the massive water supplies the cotton farmers have in NSW & QLD, think that has had to have an impact on the flow to the southern states even though they maintain it hasn't reduced the amount of water.