IN SHORT

• The NSW Government has placed the Wilcannia Weir replacement project on indefinite hold after the Australian Government declined to commit further funding, with costs blowing out from $30 million to $130 million following a controversial government-led redesign.
• The original weir, built in 1942, has been non-operational for decades — and Wilcannia's community has been waiting on a replacement since feasibility studies began in 1969.
• Critics including local councillors, federal and state MPs, and the Australian Floodplain Association have condemned the decision as a broken promise that threatens the town's fundamental right to sustainable water.

A project more than three decades in the making has been placed on indefinite hold, with the NSW Government confirming it will pause work on the replacement of the Wilcannia Weir after the Australian Government declined to commit further funding.

Central Darling Shire Council Chairman Bob Stewart said the community was "extremely disappointed" by NSW Water Minister Rose Jackson's announcement.

"We need to ensure that the weir project goes ahead. It has been needed for more than three decades for critical human water supply requirements," he said.

The Council has indicated it expects to formally invite Minister Jackson to visit Wilcannia to explain the decision in person.

The original weir, built by hand in 1942 using simple stone blocks, has long been non-operational. Feasibility studies for its replacement date back to 1969. Under the former Coalition governments, both the NSW and Federal governments had committed $15 million each toward a $30 million design that the community had been widely consulted on and supported.

Following a change of government in NSW, that design was set aside and a redesign was initiated — one the community did not support — which ultimately drove the estimated project cost to $130 million.

Federal Member for Parkes Jamie Chaffey said the delays caused by that redesign process were directly responsible for the cost blowout.

"This is the remote north-western town of Wilcannia's source of sustainable water, and yet they have waited through feasibility studies, design processes, consultation processes, talkfests, and inspections — and still, no weir," he said.

"I will continue to call out the Federal Government and the NSW Government and urge them to work with the Wilcannia community to get this project off hold and back on track."

NSW Shadow Minister for Water Steph Cooke described the announcement, which was made late on a Friday afternoon, as a deliberate attempt to avoid scrutiny.

"Late on a Friday afternoon, when newsrooms in the Far West were logging off for the week, the Minister for Water quietly announced the Wilcannia Weir project will no longer be going ahead," she said.

"Let's call this what it is — a broken promise and a failure of leadership."

The chair of the Australian Floodplain Association said putting the weir "on hold" was "playing with people's right to water."

Local independent Member for Barwon Roy Butler described the funding shortfall as a bitter blow, stating that the state's contribution should have been sufficient to compel federal action, and warning that without federal support, regional infrastructure projects like the Wilcannia Weir would continue to struggle.

Minister Jackson said the NSW Government remained committed to improving water security in Wilcannia through other means, including a new water treatment plant, an emergency groundwater bore, and network upgrades to reduce leakage.

"We remain committed to transparency and to keeping our community informed every step of the way," she said.