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Major Projects - Irrigation Upgrade |
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| Background |
| The irrigation upgrade is currently underway and much work has already been completed. The upgrade will ensure the course is maintained in its best possible condition with the most efficient use of water. |
| The existing irrigation system is over 23 years old and it has definitely reached its used by date. Over the last few years, the number of issues and fixes required to maintain it in working condition has increased. |
| Through the irrigation upgrade, we hope to achieve a situation where faults and issues are reduced significantly. |
| Outline of works |
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The replacement of over 5,000 meters of mainline pipe work. Included in this work is the addition of mainline valves which will allow sections of the system to be isolated. If there is an issue with a particular area, it can be isolated allowing irrigation to continue on the remaining areas of the course. |
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The replacement of the current irrigation pump and the creation of a second irrigation pump to access water in the current 18th dam (and potentially the new dam). |
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The replacement of the controlling software and on course controlling hardware. The controlling software is Stratus II (from Rainbird) and is being used in conjunction with an infield decoder solution. For more information on Stratus II and the decoder system, click here. |
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The replacement of over 250 "old style" irrigation sprayers (large green heads) with newer, more efficient irrigation sprayers. Once completed, no old style irrigation sprayers will remain on course. |
| Benefits |
| There are significant benefits in undertaking this work. They include: |
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Having a water efficient and manageable irrigation solution allowing us to use our limited water resources in the most beneficial manner. We estimate that the new system will be 10% to 15% more water efficient than the current system. |
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Reducing the time and cost of maintaining an old system. There will be less leaks and issues with the new system allowing other course work to be undertaken. |
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Gaining access to the stormwater stored in the current 18th dam to irrigate the course. This improves our usable stored capacity as well as allowing us to reduce the volume of water which would otherwise need to come from Downfall Creek. |
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The ability to irrigate in less time. Having access to the two pumps will provide the option of reducing the overall time required to fully irrigate the entire course. |
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The controlling software provides us with a large number of options which will allow us to customise the irrigation requirements across the course. For example, some of the drier fairways (e.g. the 7th) may need 20% more water due to their soil structure. This can be programmed into the controlling software and used when fairways are being watered. |
| Support |
| We have had significant Government support to enable us to undertake this project. With a total cost exceeding $500,000 (excluding GST) we would not have been able to proceed with the project without Government assistance. |
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Federal Government’s Community Water Grants Program |
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Community Water Grants is part of the $2 billion Australian Government Water Fund. Water savings, recycling and treatment projects that demonstrate community involvement and a clear public benefit were provided with funding. Our project was successful in securing a large grant to the value of $227,272 (excluding GST). |
| For further information in relation to this project please contact the club on (07) 3267 6333. |
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