Western Australia’s Golden Pipeline: How water gets to the outback

The Golden Pipeline is an engineering marvel that transports water 569km from the Perth Hills to the gold mining city of Kalgoorlie. Key sites along the pipeline’s length tell the story.

The Golden Pipeline, Western Australia’s longest fresh water pipeline, was constructed to provide fresh water to the thirsty goldfields in the late 19th century. This engineering marvel stretches for 569 km from the Perth Hills to Kalgoorlie, and crosses the Darling Escarpment with a 390-meter climb.

The pipeline is an amazing feat of engineering that took the work of Irishman C. Y. O’Connor, who was Western Australia’s Engineer-In-Chief. The story of the construction of the Golden Pipeline is remarkable and provides an insight into Western Australia’s rich history.

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A drought in the goldfields

When gold was discovered in the 1890s, Kalgoorlie rapidly grew into a boom town. But, with no rivers, an annual rainfall of 260mm a year, and fast evaporation rates in the outback heat, it was an extremely thirsty boom town.

Fresh water was only used for cooking, and it was more expensive than whisky or rum. People and clothes were only washed on Sundays and in brackish water from a government bore that was unfit for human consumption. The scarcity of water, brought home by a visit to the Museum of the Goldfields in Kalgoorlie, was an indication that the system was unsustainable.

C. Y. O’Connor and the Golden Pipeline

To solve the water crisis in Kalgoorlie, C. Y. O’Connor came up with an ambitious plan to construct a pipeline from reservoirs in the Perth Hills to Kalgoorlie. The pipeline had to travel 569 km and climb 390 meters over the Darling Escarpment.

This project was unprecedented, and many at the time deemed it impossible.

It was estimated to cost 2.5 million pounds, which was equivalent to the entire colony of Western Australia’s annual budget.

Leaving Kalgoorlie, the pipeline becomes a constant companion on the long drive along the Great Eastern Highway to Perth. It’s in full view, elevated above ground, and painted with special reflective paint to minimize loss from evaporation.

The Golden Pipeline runs from the Perth Hills to Kalgoorlie. Photo by David Whitley/ Australia Travel Questions.

Pumping stations along the pipeline

As you travel along the Great Eastern Highway from Kalgoorlie to Perth, you’ll pass some grand, red brick pumping stations that are abandoned. The No. 6 Pump Station in Ghouli is an example of this. At one point, this station was home to several families who maintained it. However, today, the flows are controlled remotely from Perth, and several booster stations have been installed along the route.

The State Barrier Fence

The Golden Pipeline meets the State Barrier Fence at Burracoppin, which was built to protect WA’s crops and pastures from rabbits that were introduced to Australia in 1859. The fence stretched for 3,256 km over three sections and was the longest unbroken fence in the world. Today, it is known as the State Barrier Fence and primarily keeps emus away from agricultural land.

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The Mundaring Weir

The pipeline ends at the Mundaring Weir, which is a beautiful blue bowl surrounded by bushland. The No. 1 Pump Station is located here, and it’s open on weekends to visitors. The displays inside tell the story of how the system works.

Lake O'Connor at Mundaring Weir — Lake O’Connor at Mundaring Weir is one of the few worthwhile stops on the drive from Kalgoorlie to Perth. Photo by David Whitley/ Australia Travel Questions

There’s a network of interlinked reservoirs, and the Goldfields Water Supply Scheme has expanded to supply homes and farms across the Eastern wheatbelt. Around 100,000 people directly benefit from it, and only 30,000 of them live in Kalgoorlie.

The Legacy of C. Y. O’Connor

C. Y. O’Connor did not live to see his masterpiece finished. On March 10, 1902, he rode his horse into the shallows at South Beach in Fremantle.

His suicide followed months of defamatory abuse from the press and politicians, who accused O’Connor of corruption and funnelling money to his friends and allies through the project. His main supporter, Sir John Forrest, had left state politics to become federal minister for defence, leaving O’Connor feeling embattled and in need of protection as his mental health deteriorated.

Despite O’Connor’s untimely death, the project he had dedicated his life to was a resounding success. Eight months after his passing, Forrest turned on the taps at Mount Charlotte amid great celebration. The project had been completed on budget, and a posthumous Royal Commission fully vindicated O’Connor.

Today, a statue of the revered engineer stands in Fremantle Port, but the greatest tribute to his legacy is undoubtedly the pipeline itself, which stretches 569km from the green hills to the inhospitable goldfields. To journey along its length is to pay homage to the genius who met a tragic end.