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This article builds on concerns previously published on this website:

April 2022 edition
of the NSW Freshwater Fisher

There is continuing concern that Snowy 2.0 is a $10 billion white elephant, despite the project being well underway. From a recreational fishing point of view, it will introduce noxious and pest fish into the headwaters of the Murrumbidgee, Murray and Snowy Rivers, probably ruining both the native fishery and trout fishery.

The project was meant to cost $2 billion and be completed by last year. Latest estimates are that the real cost will be $10 billion and completion will take 10 years, not the 4 years originally estimated. The power stations and tunnels will alone cost $6 billion. Electricity consumers will have to bear the additional $4 billion cost of grid connections - something that was not mentioned in the original grand announcements, and the construction of which has not yet been approved.

Large areas of Kosciuszko National Park have been ruined by clearing, blasting, hundreds of kilometres of roads and tracks, and millions of tonnes of excavated spoil will be dumped in Tantangara and Talbingo Dams. Four high-voltage transmission lines have to be built through eight kilometres of Kosciuszko National Park with a cleared easement swath up to 200 metres wide.

This was all enabled by Federal and NSW government subsidies and exemptions from environmental legislations.

In the rush to announce this massive pipe dream put forward by Snowy Hydro, it seems there wasn't enough thought given to many of the consequences and unknown costs...an article in the Sydney Morning Herald by Ted Woodley on 15 March says "Senate Estimates papers confirm the announcement was cobbled together in less than two weeks after the concept was floated by Snowy Hydro."

Read the full article about Snowy 2.0 by Ted Woodley in the Sydney Morning Herald at this link.

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