The pipeline will be a long-term drinking water supply solution for the region, and TasWater said the solution was identified ‘after careful consideration, research and work with the community’.
Pioneer’s tap water was deemed unfit to drink in 2012 after TasWater tests showed unsafe levels of cadmium and lead.
TasWater installed drinking water tanks at properties around the town, and since then the state’s water authority has been routinely testing the drinking water.
The Pioneer pipeline will constitute a safer and more reliable source of drinking water for the town.
Community, Stakeholder and Customer Relations Department Manager Ruth Dowty said it will be a continuation of the Ringarooma Valley water scheme, featuring a pipeline along Winnaleah Road, the Tasman Highway and Gladstone Road to Pioneer.
“We will also be using some of the existing infrastructure at Herrick to deliver treated, safe and reliable drinking water to Pioneer,” Dowty said.
“After Dorset Council voted unanimously to support the reintroduction of a reticulated drinking water supply to Pioneer last year, we have been busy planning and investigating a long-term solution for the town.”
TasWater received approval from its regulators for the project last year, after which the company said it would take an estimated three years to fulfil the project.
“We will continue to keep the community informed and encourage them to get in contact with us if they have any questions,” said Dowty.
TasWater said it is on track to deliver treated water to the town by May 2023.
For more information visit the TasWater website.