Port Macquarie-Hastings Council’s Water Supply Manager, Murray Thompson, has taken out the 2007 National Local Government Engineering Medal, announced in August at the International Institute of Public Works Engineering Australia (IPWEA) International Conference in Cairns. Presented by Engineers Australia, the medal is awarded every two years.
Having been named New South Wales’ top engineer, Murray became eligible for the award, which recognises excellence in Local Government engineering.
He was recognised for his forward thinking and planning, demonstrated through the Port Macquarie Reclaimed Water Scheme, which was introduced before the drought.
Council nominated Murray for the New South Wales award based on his outstanding leadership in expanding Council’s water supply network and particularly his contribution to the development of the Hastings District Water Supply Augmentation Scheme.
His expertise has been integral in the delivery of over $120 million worth of capital works in the past ten years, including the design and construction of Cowarra Off Creek Storage Dam, Koree Island Pumping Station, the Three Villages Water Treatment Plant Project, the Wauchope Water Treatment Plant and the Port Macquarie Reclaimed Water Treatment Plant.
Murray Thompson’s approach to water management has seen Council recognised in the top ten performing New South Wales Local Government water utilities for the past two years. Major water supply projects under his leadership have been recognised for excellence at regional, state and national levels for planning, engineering, construction, environmental protection, process automation and control and cultural development.
Murray has been an employee of Council for the past 28 years, having started as a cadet engineer. He holds a Civil Engineering degree, a Graduate Diploma in Electrical Engineering, a Graduate Diploma in Local Government Engineering and a Masters in Engineering Management. Adding to his string of accolades, Murray was also named the winner of the Australian Water Association’s New South Wales Branch, Roger Pettit Award.
“It is a great privilege to have been selected to receive this award and I think that it reflects very well upon all of us in Council’s water supply division,” Murray Thompson said. “In any organisation, we can only be truly effective and successful if we work as part of a team.”
