AN IDEA that could fix Lake Albert's water woes once and for all could be one step closer to getting a green light.
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Wagga council wrote to the state's Water Minister Melinda Pavey last year requesting a debit credit scheme that could see the volume of council treated water, diverted into Murrumbidgee River, recovered.
A pipe would be built from the Murrumbidgee River to Marshalls Creek, topping up Lake Albert's receding water levels which has been a problem for decades.
Wagga council's general manager Peter Thompson said the council had heard back from the state government with the proposed plan now under consideration.
Mr Thompson said low water levels, combined with algal blooms, had plagued Lake Albert for about three generations and the council was interested in find a permanent solution.
"Lake Albert is a significant asset to the community, not just for recreation and the amenity of the area, but it is an economic driver for this city," he said. "So if we can have the lake full all-year round that would be a great economic initiative for this city, which again was included as part of the submission.
"To find a solution, which we think we have done, for the government to support will be great outcome."
Mr Thompson said the next step will be arranging a meeting with Ms Pavey to discuss the plan further.
"We are mindful that there is a lot of state resources at the moment directed towards the bushfire emergency ... so whilst we are looking for a meeting, we are not going to be jumping up and down if the government says it has other things on its plate," he said.
Until then the lake will be out of action unless a significant rainfall tops up its water levels, said Mr Thompson.
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Residents are currently warned to avoid contact with Lake Albert's water after a red alert was issued for blue-green algae.
"Fortunately, or unfortunately, depending on one's perspective, the community is well-educated on the dangers of algae blooms in Lake Albert," Mr Thompson said.
"We would like to get back to a stage where it doesn't occur."
The council has been trialing ultrasound technology that controls cyanobacteria bloom since October 2018. Although no concrete data has confirmed its success, Mr Thompson said it appeared to be making a difference to some algal species.
"We are going to do a detailed analysis of that, by people fair wiser than I, in the coming months to determine if there is a business case for us to do it continually," he said.
"We will not be going down that path if it does not provide a solution and the only way to determine that is if we get people to analyse the data."