About 15 landholders now have a continual water supply to their properties and houses as a result of a capping and piping scheme which was officially launched last week.
The Goondablui Bore Scheme, which has been under construction for the past 18 to 20 months, was unveiled at an information day on Wednesday last week by infrastructure, planning and natural resources minister Craig Knowles.
The landmark water saving scheme is Australia's largest natural-pressure artesian bore scheme, which will save the equivalent of 640 Olympic swimming pools of water going to waste every year.
Launched at Jomara Station, Collarenebri, the single 'capped and piped' Goondablui bore replaces three bores that have gushed out water continuously since being sunk about 100 years ago.
The minister physically shut down one of the old bores, sunk in 1911.
Servicing 65,000 hectares of grazing, cropping and irrigation land through 240 kilometres of pipes networked across 15 properties, the $1.6 million Goondablui bore network delivers water to 125 troughs, at an average rate of 4L per second.
Comparatively, the three decommissioned bores have discharged water into inefficient open drains at a staggering rate of 24L per second, one of them at 39L per second.
Ninety-five per cent of this water was wasted by evaporation and seepage into the soil, adding to major environmental problems such as salinity.
The Goondablui Bore Scheme brings with it many benefits including preventing 600 tonnes, or 24 semi-trailer loads, of salt discharge entering the Murray Darling Basin; replacing 65km of open drains, which cause erosion and land degradation problems; ensuring cleaner water for farming and domestic purposes; and reducing feral animals, which no longer have access to bore water left in open drains.
Goondablui Bore Scheme trustee Ian Dunstan said the new scheme would be a major help for him, not only saving water but also not having to worry about getting his stock bogged in the bore drains.
"I've been waiting for more than 20 years for this to happen (capping and piping).
"Because our property is situated right at the end of a drain we run out of water every summer due to evaporation.
"Now that it's finally happened, I won't have to worry about having dry tanks.
"And it's taken carting water for stock out of the equation."
Mr Dunstan said it was expected that more capping and piping bore schemes would be completed in the area by Christmas.
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"Another two schemes - one just above the border and another to the east - should be finished by the end of the year.
"It's (Goondablui Bore Scheme) been a great community effort, it's been good for us but also for the environment, because if we don't look after the basin and let water deplete at an enormous rate it may not be there for future generations to use."
Mr Dunstan said it would take a few years before any benefits could be seen.
Meanwhile, Mayor Peter Waterford who was at the launch said close to 200 people were present at the information day to look at how the capping and piping system worked.
He said a book on the history of 100 years in the Western Division was also launched on the day.
"People were impressed by the whole scheme."
After analysing the bore and seeing how a grid pattern ensured the water coming out was actually cool before it rose up from the surface, Mayor Waterford said he would look into trying to implement a similar system for the town's water supply so people could have cold water for domestic purposes during summer.
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